Local costs · Iowa

What a home costs across Iowa

Property-tax rates, insurance, and closing costs vary widely by county. Below are the state-wide rules that apply everywhere in Iowa, then every county with its own tax rate and insurance range.

Statewide facts

Home insurance average
About $1,268 per year for a standard HO-3 policy (NAIC 2022 state average). Individual counties run above or below this based on local hazard risk — see the table below.
Transfer & recording tax
Iowa real estate transfer tax: 0.16% of price — seller customarily paysOn the $227,300 state median home, the buyer’s customary share is about $0; the seller customarily covers about $364.
Title insurance
Iowa uses competitive (filed) rates. Rates are competitive rather than state-set, so we model title and settlement from a national declining-rate curve calibrated to published costs.
State income tax
Iowa income tax is modeled at about 2.50% effective for a married household at $100,000 (3.15% filing single). These are modeled effective rates from Tax Foundation 2026 brackets.

All 99 counties in Iowa

Effective property-tax rate (Census ACS) and a typical annual insurance range at the state median home value. Select a county for the full breakdown.

CountyProperty taxInsurance / yr
Adair County1.28%$1,070–$2,380typical $1,640
Adams County1.26%$960–$2,130typical $1,470
Allamakee County1.27%$730–$1,640typical $1,130
Appanoose County1.34%$790–$1,750typical $1,210
Audubon County1.34%$920–$2,060typical $1,420
Benton County1.31%$770–$1,710typical $1,180
Black Hawk County1.50%$720–$1,610typical $1,110
Boone County1.37%$830–$1,840typical $1,270
Bremer County1.29%$700–$1,550typical $1,070
Buchanan County1.36%$790–$1,770typical $1,220
Buena Vista County1.21%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Butler County1.35%$780–$1,740typical $1,200
Calhoun County1.32%$900–$2,000typical $1,380
Carroll County1.09%$850–$1,900typical $1,310
Cass County1.34%$920–$2,060typical $1,420
Cedar County1.21%$990–$2,200typical $1,520
Cerro Gordo County1.45%$800–$1,780typical $1,230
Cherokee County0.99%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Chickasaw County1.02%$860–$1,930typical $1,330
Clarke County1.60%$880–$1,970typical $1,360
Clay County1.15%$820–$1,830typical $1,260
Clayton County1.29%$750–$1,670typical $1,150
Clinton County1.53%$810–$1,810typical $1,250
Crawford County1.28%$850–$1,890typical $1,300
Dallas County1.41%$790–$1,750typical $1,210
Davis County1.40%$850–$1,900typical $1,310
Decatur County1.61%$880–$1,960typical $1,350
Delaware County1.34%$860–$1,930typical $1,330
Des Moines County1.51%$830–$1,840typical $1,270
Dickinson County0.92%$790–$1,770typical $1,220
Dubuque County1.23%$790–$1,770typical $1,220
Emmet County1.47%$790–$1,750typical $1,210
Fayette County1.30%$800–$1,780typical $1,230
Floyd County1.34%$860–$1,930typical $1,330
Franklin County1.32%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Fremont County1.21%$940–$2,090typical $1,440
Greene County1.15%$940–$2,090typical $1,440
Grundy County1.14%$780–$1,740typical $1,200
Guthrie County1.22%$920–$2,060typical $1,420
Hamilton County1.26%$850–$1,900typical $1,310
Hancock County1.18%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Hardin County1.37%$990–$2,220typical $1,530
Harrison County1.32%$780–$1,740typical $1,200
Henry County1.56%$920–$2,060typical $1,420
Howard County1.25%$730–$1,640typical $1,130
Humboldt County1.29%$940–$2,100typical $1,450
Ida County1.16%$850–$1,890typical $1,300
Iowa County1.36%$930–$2,070typical $1,430
Jackson County1.23%$1,030–$2,310typical $1,590
Jasper County1.41%$810–$1,800typical $1,240
Jefferson County1.41%$830–$1,860typical $1,280
Johnson County1.52%$1,330–$2,960typical $2,040
Jones County1.33%$930–$2,070typical $1,430
Keokuk County1.26%$920–$2,040typical $1,410
Kossuth County1.00%$850–$1,900typical $1,310
Lee County1.38%$780–$1,740typical $1,200
Linn County1.65%$820–$1,830typical $1,260
Louisa County1.17%$1,010–$2,250typical $1,550
Lucas County1.37%$850–$1,890typical $1,300
Lyon County0.87%$790–$1,770typical $1,220
Madison County1.48%$700–$1,570typical $1,080
Mahaska County1.32%$750–$1,670typical $1,150
Marion County1.22%$730–$1,640typical $1,130
Marshall County1.42%$770–$1,730typical $1,190
Mills County1.47%$960–$2,150typical $1,480
Mitchell County1.10%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Monona County1.03%$910–$2,030typical $1,400
Monroe County1.38%$820–$1,830typical $1,260
Montgomery County1.65%$940–$2,100typical $1,450
Muscatine County1.50%$760–$1,700typical $1,170
O'Brien County0.98%$850–$1,890typical $1,300
Osceola County1.13%$830–$1,860typical $1,280
Page County1.41%$880–$1,970typical $1,360
Palo Alto County1.20%$890–$1,990typical $1,370
Plymouth County1.07%$850–$1,890typical $1,300
Pocahontas County1.13%$880–$1,960typical $1,350
Polk County1.68%$700–$1,570typical $1,080
Pottawattamie County1.57%$980–$2,190typical $1,510
Poweshiek County1.23%$910–$2,030typical $1,400
Ringgold County1.34%$1,180–$2,640typical $1,820
Sac County1.10%$860–$1,910typical $1,320
Scott County1.47%$620–$1,380typical $950
Shelby County1.28%$960–$2,130typical $1,470
Sioux County1.12%$840–$1,870typical $1,290
Story County1.40%$800–$1,780typical $1,230
Tama County1.38%$800–$1,780typical $1,230
Taylor County1.26%$950–$2,120typical $1,460
Union County1.80%$800–$1,780typical $1,230
Van Buren County1.18%$860–$1,930typical $1,330
Wapello County1.58%$620–$1,380typical $950
Warren County1.43%$660–$1,480typical $1,020
Washington County1.37%$940–$2,100typical $1,450
Wayne County1.36%$900–$2,020typical $1,390
Webster County1.39%$890–$1,990typical $1,370
Winnebago County1.32%$850–$1,900typical $1,310
Winneshiek County1.12%$790–$1,750typical $1,210
Woodbury County1.45%$900–$2,000typical $1,380
Worth County1.10%$870–$1,940typical $1,340
Wright County1.51%$860–$1,910typical $1,320

* Property-tax rate is approximate because the county’s Census median is top-coded.

How these numbers are built

Every figure comes from public data or our own math: Census ACS property taxes, NAIC insurance averages scaled by FEMA risk, and researched transfer-tax and title schedules.

Estimates, not advice. See the methodology for sources, vintages, and the honest gaps.