How to read a buy-or-build ledger in the Des Moines metro
What is a county record, what is a metro estimate, and what neither number is.
Two columns, two kinds of number
The resale column starts from recorded Polk County sales: median price per square foot, by city, over the last twelve months. The build column starts from metro cost estimates for the current year, by finish level, plus a lot allowance. The page says which is which.
Both columns are estimates of a monthly payment at this week's Freddie Mac rate via FRED. They are not a builder's bid and not a lender's quote.
What an address changes
If you give an address in Polk County, the assessor's record for that parcel replaces the generic starting point: assessed value, year built, lot size, last recorded sale. Cities outside this file, including Waukee and Norwalk, do not get a city page because the sales file does not cover them.
Primortul LLC, Ankeny, Iowa, publishes this site. The tool works without an email. If you leave one, that is the ask for the readout, and it is the only email the tool sends.