A New Focus
As they enter 2025, Iowa REALTORS® are adjusting their focus.
The real estate market is like the weather in many ways—impossible to predict precisely and apt to change if you stick around.
Like weather forecasters, these days real estate professionals are bringing in new tools and more technology to serve their clients as effectively as possible. From online services and timely data tracking to digital tours and communication, the options available can make a real estate career feel as high-tech as a meteorologist’s at times.
But as the professionals we profile will tell you, there is no substitute for experience and relationship. And in a market that continues to fluctuate significantly from month to month, helping clients take the time to focus on the details will be key.
Despite the anticipated challenges ahead, these experts are focusing on the positive. They see the forecast as partly sunny, not partly cloudy.
Tom Butler
Tom Butler Real Estate | Keller Williams
Like most in the industry, Keller Williams’ Tom Butler says 2024 had softer sales activity than the previous few years. “The market was down. As a whole. And for the fourth year in a row, building permits were down, too.”
Butler says that was one more factor affecting sales activity. “The higher cost of new construction affects sales of existing homes. And the higher prices in general mean even buyers with equity have reduced buying power. So all of that makes for a softer market.”
He says there are only so many factors that can be predicted with some semblance of accuracy. It’s the events you can’t plan for that often have the biggest and most unexpected effects. “Everyone sort of assumed 2024 was going to be a bit slower since election years always are. We expect a net positive effect on the market mostly because buyers are just more comfortable having that unknown factor resolved.”
What no one predicted were hurricanes and massive fires. Those events, too, will have a ripple effect later this year. “Those natural disasters and storms usually end up having some effect on the cost of materials or availability of supplies, and that just adds to the cost of construction,” Butler says.
As 2025 began, he says total available inventory around the metro was down under 3,500 units, which “is ridiculously low.”
Despite those less-than-positive factors, Butler believes 2025 will still trend in a positive direction. “My advice to potential buyers is to recognize that costs and prices are what they are. Waiting for that to change is not the best approach. Rates, too, are not likely to change dramatically. We’re certainly not getting back to where they were in 2020–2021.”
He says, “The real test will be the activity we see in the fall. If rates drop incrementally as the year progresses, that could spur additional activity. And as people get used to the current conditions, existing homes will be priced at a point where they’ll sell more quickly. That’s especially true for any property under $350,000.”
As home prices continue to rise, one of the advantages for sellers is space. “That’s often the biggest asset with resale properties,” Butler says. “New homes tend to be smaller, and the cost per square foot is higher, too. So that can make an existing property even more appealing.
“REALTORS® are using all the tools available to help market properties and to connect buyers with the home and the financing that are in their best interests,” he says.
Focusing on those key steps in 2025, he says, makes 2025 look even better than 2024.
Tom Butler
Tom Butler Real Estate | Keller Williams
TomButlerTeam.com
Marc Lee
New Iowa Listings Team | RE/MAX Precision
The members of the New Iowa Listings Team at RE/MAX Precision say they had a really positive year in 2024 and anticipate similar activity in 2025. They say, “People have begun to adapt to the current conditions. Buyers recognize that interest rates aren’t going to change dramatically, and there’s a lot of pent-up energy from folks who’ve been sitting on the sidelines. They’re ready to get back in the market.”
Several factors will affect which segments of the market see the most activity in 2025. But the New Iowa Listings Team says homeownership remains a key tool in building wealth, so finding ways to help buyers enter the market remains crucial for maintaining a strong economy.
“First-time buyers are often hurt the most in markets like this. It can be a struggle for them to come up with a down-payment as prices climb,” says team member Marc Lee.
Entry-level homes, no matter the market, typically move most quickly. And when higher-end home sales remain steady, that benefits all market segments. “Days on market weren’t up significantly at any price point. In fact, we saw consistent sales of high-end properties in 2024, and that activity works its way down as one sale spurs another,” says Lee.
One of the first positive signs early this year, he says, was the close of election season “Any time there’s an upcoming election, people tend to press pause on major decisions like selling or buying a home. No matter what the result of the election, simply having it behind us is a good thing for the real estate market.”
As a result, the New Iowa Listings Team anticipates a stable and even more active market for the year ahead. “The market is always changing, so part of the responsibility of real estate professionals is to help educate buyers and sellers on how to navigate those changes,” Lee says. “Experienced REALTORS® live in this industry every day. That means we can help buyers plan and pace their purchase and help sellers target the right market for their properties no matter what the changes.”
As they anticipate a brand new year of activity, members of the New Iowa Listings Team say in many ways their task remains the same, even when the focus adapts to suit the market. “Tools and tech may change,” Lee says, “but our job doesn’t. We put those resources to work to find the best result for our clients.”
Members of the New Iowa Listings Team are very optimistic about 2025. “Staying on top of the changes and educating our clients is what we do in any market,” says Lee.
Focusing on the positive as the year begins, the team says, will lead to a positive conclusion to the year
as well.
Marc Lee
New Iowa Listings Team | RE/MAX Precision
NewIowaListings.com
Scott Steelman
Iowa Realty
Iowa Realty’s Scott Steelman, 2025 Vice President of the Des Moines Area REALTORS® Association (DMAAR), says no matter how long you’ve been in this business, there are always things to learn. “I’d say 2024 was somewhat disappointing for me personally and for the market as a whole. Business was off across the metro, and I certainly didn’t meet the goals I’d set for myself.”
A number of factors played into that, including the tepid market overall, but Steelman says he’s entering the new year with a new focus. “Refocusing is part of what you have to do every year if you’re going to adapt, and there are things I’m changing for 2025 as a result,” he says.
That more-targeted vision reflects the slower pace of sales activity he anticipates continuing in 2025, but Steelman sees indications that the market will remain strong nonetheless.
“There are pros and cons to having large-production builders in the metro,” Steelman says. “But their ability to meet demand, to provide in-house lending, and even to keep subcontractors busy has a positive effect on the resale market and helps keep those subs in business so there’s labor available for smaller builders, too.”
Interest rates aren’t anticipated to drop significantly. But if the gradual decline brings rates into the low 6% range, Steelman says sales numbers may begin to rise. “Home prices have been an issue for a while. I’ve been in numerous meetings lately related to the upcoming legislative session and the issue of affordable housing. Community leaders are trying to address the issue. But there are challenges at every level, starting with the cost of land all the way to government regulation. No one has the magic answer.”
As the future DMAAR President, Steelman says legislative issues are a priority. The association is working closely with government agencies, lenders, and builders so that each has a voice in seeking solutions.
“The current property tax system is a concern for everyone in the industry, including community leaders. But finding a way to slow those rising rates while still making sure cities have the funds they need to function—it’s a complicated issue but one everyone wants to resolve,” says Steelman.
Despite these challenges and a slower than anticipated 2024, Steelman is focused on a stronger 2025. “Often, by the time clients come to us, they already have a vision of what they can afford and what they want. The more we educate clients and train agents to understand the market, the more successful everyone is. That’s always been a REALTOR’S® job. The ups and downs of the market don’t change that.”
Scott Steelman
Iowa Realty
ScottSteelman.IowaRealty.com
Eric Webster
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices First Realty
Having anticipated a slower year in 2024, Eric Webster of Berkshire Hathaway, the 2025 President of DMAAR, says the final numbers were better than expected, and he’s looking for similar activity this year. With the Presidential election behind us and some of that uncertainty resolved, economists are offering a positive outlook for 2025. The same is true within the real estate industry.
“Everyone is focused on interest rates,” says Webster, “but I’m not sure that’s the biggest factor in the economic environment. What the Fed does to rates doesn’t automatically result in lower mortgage rates. There are a lot of other factors that play into that rate.”
He says potential buyers should certainly take rates into consideration. But focusing solely on that number doesn’t offer a complete picture when one is looking to buy or sell a home. And buyers are beginning to understand that.
“The chief economist for the National Association of REALTORS® indicates rates are not really going to change much, and so many buyers who’ve been sitting on the fence are tired of waiting,” Webster says. “People are recognizing that this is the norm and that waiting isn’t going to help.”
Webster says that even if rates decline gradually in 2025, prices are not going anywhere but up. Buyers are changing their focus in response to that. Real estate professionals in turn are focused on helping clients balance multiple factors that play into the purchase decision: interest rates, personal debt, taxes and insurance, and the purchase price of the home.
“In 2016 the average price of a home was $210,000,” Webster says. “Now it’s nearly $300,000. And the average sale price for new construction is over $400,000.”
That price gap may be affecting the market even more than interest rates are. “There’s really more than one market at play. We have a 2- to 2.5-month inventory of resale properties and an 8-month inventory of new construction,” Webster says. “Things are moving slower with the new construction, and some builders are even offering discounts and financing deals to help move properties.”
Those higher prices are also affecting opportunities for first-time buyers. “Along with prices, the average age for first-time buyers is also rising. It’s getting harder and harder for young buyers to be able to enter the market,” he says.
Despite those challenges, Webster expects 2025 to be nearly a carbon copy of 2024 as far as inventory and sales are concerned. “Because people are tired of waiting and they know prices are not coming down, 2025 will see growth overall. If rates drop a bit, that will help kick off those sales. And if we as an industry can continue to focus on creative solutions for more-affordable options, the market will remain strong.”
Eric Webster
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices First Realty
EricWebster.BHHSFirstRealty.com