Cedar Rapids, Iowa Real Estate Market 2026: Score 68, Undervalued, and One of the Few Markets Where the Income Math Works

Cedar Rapids, Iowa scores 68 out of 100 on the PropertyIQ index as of February 2026.

That score represents a 13-point drop from December 2025, when Cedar Rapids posted an 81. It is also, on its own, a somewhat misleading summary of what the underlying data shows. Because Cedar Rapids has one of the most interesting affordability profiles in the entire PropertyIQ dataset.

The income required to buy a home at the current median is $70,436 per year. The Cedar Rapids metro median household income is $77,084 per year as of 2023 Census data. The income needed to buy is lower than what the average household already earns. That is not the norm. In the vast majority of U.S. markets, buyers need to earn significantly more than the local median. In Cedar Rapids, the math works in the buyer's favor.

PropertyIQ scores Cedar Rapids an 68 out of 100 as of February 28, 2026. Scores are updated monthly using Zillow, Census, and Realtor.com data.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The Zillow home value index for Cedar Rapids is $232,340 as of January 31, 2026. The median listing price on Realtor.com is $265,000 as of February 1, 2026.

The overvaluation reading is -14.6%. That negative sign means Cedar Rapids home prices currently sit 14.6% below what the local income base can support under standard affordability assumptions. The affordable home price is $290,012. The current home value is $57,672 below that threshold.

The years-to-save figure is 5.85 years for a typical household to accumulate a 20% down payment. That is below the national average and significantly below what households face in markets where prices have outrun incomes.

For first-time buyers, Cedar Rapids is a market where the structural barriers to entry are lower than nearly anywhere else in the Midwest with comparable amenities.

Why the Score Dropped 13 Points

The 13-point decline from December 2025 (81) to February 2026 (68) is the primary question any data-driven buyer or investor needs to answer before drawing conclusions about this market.

Looking at the metrics available:

Listing prices have declined 5.32% year over year as of February 2026. When prices fall, it can reflect either demand weakness or a correction from overvaluation. In Cedar Rapids, it reflects neither in a dramatic sense: prices are falling back toward fair value from a position of modest overvaluation in prior periods, and the market remains undervalued.

The demand score is 45.82 and the supply score is 31.10 as of February 2026. These are lower readings than a market with an 81 score in December would show, which explains the composite score decline. Fewer buyers competing relative to available supply created downward pressure on the score.

New listings rose 12.3% year over year in February, adding to the supply side. That 12.3% increase, against a demand score that softened, shifted the balance in a direction that reduced the composite score.

Importantly, the pending ratio remains 0.7626. That means 76.3% of all active inventory in Cedar Rapids currently has an accepted offer. That is a high absorption rate. Home sales rose 18.43% year over year. The market is not soft. Buyers are active. The score decline reflects a normalization from peak conditions rather than a deterioration in fundamentals.

The Score History in Context

Cedar Rapids' full score history over 20 months shows a market that oscillates but has been reliably in the mid-to-upper tier:

• February 2026: 68
• January 2026: 77
• December 2025: 81
• November 2025: 80
• October 2025: 83
• September 2025: 74
• August 2025: 81

The 68 is the lowest reading in this series. But the market has historically recovered from dips. The February 2025 reading was 63, from which the market recovered to 85 by May 2025. The pattern suggests the current 68 may be a trough reading rather than the beginning of a sustained downward trend, particularly given the strong absorption data.

Transaction Volume Is Growing

Home sales in Cedar Rapids are up 18.43% year over year as of February 2026. That is a significant volume increase. A market where more homes are transacting is a market where buyers are active despite the higher listing count and modestly weaker demand score.

At 238 closed sales tracked in February 2026, Cedar Rapids maintains consistent turnover for a metro of its size. New construction sales are 24 units in November 2025, reflecting a modest but active new-build market.

The sale-to-list ratio is 98.62% as of November 2025. Sellers who transact are getting within 1.4% of their asking price on average. Price cuts affect 8.75% of active listings, below the national average for markets at similar price points and score levels.

The Investment Profile

Cedar Rapids is not a speculative appreciation market. The five-year appreciation is 13.77% as of February 2026, well below the national average of the 2020-2026 period. The Zillow 12-month forecast is 1.9% additional appreciation. These are measured, stable numbers.

What Cedar Rapids offers is a different investment profile: undervalued entry, income-supported prices, strong absorption, and a stable economic base with low default risk. This is a profile that favors long-hold rental strategies over flip plays or short-term appreciation bets.

The Zillow rent index is $1,103 per month as of December 2025. At the current home value of $232,340, the gross rent multiplier is approximately 17.6x. The income to comfortably afford that rent level is $44,139 per year, well within reach of Cedar Rapids' median income base.

The homeownership rate is 74.82% as of 2023 Census data. In a market with high homeownership and incomes that support buying, the rental pool is smaller but stable: renters in Cedar Rapids are generally either young households building savings, workers in transition, or lower-income households for whom the remaining income-to-buy gap is still a barrier.

The Economic Foundation

Cedar Rapids is an industrial and food processing hub anchored by Quaker Oats, Cargill, and Rockwell Collins (now Collins Aerospace), among others. The city hosts significant manufacturing and logistics operations connected to Iowa's agricultural economy. That base has historically provided employment stability even during cyclical downturns that affect more finance-or-technology-dependent metros.

The unemployment rate is 3.4% as of November 2025. Population is 275,960 as of 2023 Census data, reflecting a stable, modestly growing metro. The median age is 39.3 years, indicating an older workforce with established household formation patterns.

How Cedar Rapids Compares to Des Moines

Des Moines, IA is the other Iowa market in the PropertyIQ dataset. Des Moines has a larger, more diversified economy anchored by insurance and financial services companies. Cedar Rapids offers lower median prices and a higher income-to-price ratio, making it the more accessible Iowa market from a buyer affordability standpoint.

For investors who have been watching Des Moines and found prices or competition too high, Cedar Rapids offers a smaller-market alternative with comparable affordability metrics and a similar industrial-economy stability profile.

What the 68 Score Actually Means

A score of 68 in a market that is 14.6% undervalued, where household income exceeds what is needed to buy, where home sales are up 18.43% year over year, and where 76.3% of inventory is under contract is not a warning sign. It is a reflection of a market coming off a strong period into a normalization phase.

The 13-point drop over two months is meaningful and worth monitoring. If the next two monthly readings continue the downward trend, the underlying demand weakness will need reassessment. But based on the current pending ratio, transaction volume, and affordability metrics, the drop looks like seasonal softening and listing mix changes rather than a fundamental deterioration.

Cedar Rapids is one of a small number of markets in the PropertyIQ dataset where a working-class household earning the area median income can realistically qualify for a mortgage at current home values. In a national housing market where affordability crises are the dominant narrative, that is genuinely uncommon.

PropertyIQ score as of February 28, 2026. Listing and inventory data as of February 1, 2026. Zillow home value data as of January 31, 2026. Sale-to-list and rent data as of November and December 2025. Census data as of 2023. Unemployment data as of November 2025. All data for informational purposes only.