The story of this market
The typical home in Webster County, Iowa sells for about $174,000, or $138 per square foot.
Prices are up +2.4% from a year ago, so sellers still have some momentum. Homes take about 26 days to sell, which is fast. Over the long run, values in this county have grown 64% since 2000. Last year 9 of 12 neighborhoods saw prices rise, so the story isn't the same street to street. The biggest natural hazard here is tornado, which FEMA rates very high. HUD's fair market rent for a two-bedroom is $927 a month.
HUD sets the fair market rent for a 2-bedroom at $927 a month. FEMA's National Risk Index rates overall hazard risk here as Relatively Moderate.
Price climate
Every year of price change, 2000–2025
+3.1%
2025
Each stripe is one year's median price change across the area's census tracts (FHFA repeat-sales index). Deep blue is a strong gain year, red a falling year. Best: 2021 (+8.7%). Worst: 2010 (-3.3%). Hover to read a year.
Monthly price momentum
Home values since 2015
+1.5%
IA · past 12 months
Freddie Mac House Price Index, single-family homes, monthly through 2026-08. Each line starts at 100 in January 2015, so a reading of 180 means prices are up 80% since then.
Rent benchmark
Fair market rent by size
$1,191
3-bed / month
HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal 2027, for this county. A typical rent for a modest unit, used to set housing-voucher payments.
Neighborhood price trend
Long-run price trend, 2000–2025
+3.1%
2025 change
FHFA repeat-sales index, median of 12 census tracts in this county (2000 = 100). Bars are each year's median change.
Natural hazard exposure
The area's risk shape
58
Relatively Moderate
FEMA National Risk Index. Each spoke is a hazard ranked nationally, where 100 is the most exposed. Expected annual loss: $24,729,085.
Mortgage activity
Home lending in this county
83.7%
2018 approval rate
| Year | Applications | Loans made | Approval | Investor share | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1193 | 800 | 83.7% | 11.7% | $120,000 |
CFPB Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records: every mortgage application reported by lenders for homes in this county. Approval rate is approved ÷ decided (withdrawn and incomplete files excluded). Investor share and home value are the median census tract.
Webster County, Iowa
Webster County's housing market is currently characterized as a buyer's market with low sales volume and modest price appreciation. The market is driven by a limited supply of inventory and a price-to-income ratio that remains favorable for local buyers compared to national averages.
No ARED distress-ledger coverage for this county yet — the foreclosure ingest rotates the national county directory, and filings appear here once the county's posted notices are read. Key-figure check: no independent anchor retained yet — first-researched cycles establish the anchor baseline this pass.
Select a city to expand its ZIP intel reports beneath · 3 cities · 12 ZIP reports
Median prices moved up 16.3% year over year.
Homes spend a median of 92 days on market with 1.5 months of supply — a fast-moving market.
3% of listings have cut prices · homes sell at 97.94% of asking — demand is running ahead of supply.
no recorded foreclosure-ledger notices (0.0 per 10,000 residents) · unemployment 3.8% · poverty 12.9% — a stable, low-distress profile.
ACS 2024 5-year estimates. Aggregate published statistics for this county — never individual records, and never an attribute of any individual property or resident.
Deterministic aggregate of 6 researched ZIP reports of 12 — sales_count-weighted (population fallback); per point, children lacking the value or its weight are excluded. Tax rates, sentiment and context notes are tier-native and never roll.
No researched properties in this county yet — the property base layer populates as property research runs, and each property feeds its ZIP's roll-up.
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
researched Sep 27
| 50501 | Fort Dodge | $174,795 | $111 | +24.9% | 14 | — | — | — | 181 | $796 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50523 | Callender | $165,000 | $112 | +2.4% | 88 | 97.5% | 15% | 4.2 | 12 | $406 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50530 | Dayton | $167,000 | $115 | +2.5% | 85 | 96% | 12% | 7 | 28 | $523 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50539 | Fenton | $206,000 | $123 | +71.9% | 63 | 100% | — | — | 5 | $760 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50543 | Gowrie | $172,024 | $105 | +2.1% | 88 | 98.5% | 12% | 7.2 | 21 | $698 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50548 | Humboldt | $215,000 | $135 | +3.2% | 48 | 98.2% | 12% | 4.1 | 32 | $741 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50558 | Livermore | $425,000 | $185 | +3.2% | 42 | 98.5% | 12% | 4.1 | 88 | $873 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50566 | Moorland | $198,912 | $174 | +21.8% | 90 | 100% | — | — | 147 | $1,260 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50569 | Otho | $106,100 | $78 | +2.1% | 112 | 96.5% | 12% | 8.4 | 61 | $665 | researched Sep 27 |
| 50578 | Ringsted | $145,000 | $80 | +2.5% | 105 | 96.5% | 12% | 5.2 | 53 | $658 | researched Sep 27 |
Figures are each ZIP report's own latest research — the county roll-up aggregates them sales_count-weighted (population fallback); ZIPs cycle quarterly.
Reporting agencies in Webster County recorded a violent crime rate of 1,026 per 100,000 residents in 2024, which is higher than regional averages.
The county economy is anchored by manufacturing and agricultural sectors, with Fort Dodge serving as the primary economic hub for the region.
Property taxes are assessed by the county based on local millage rates; Iowa law provides for homestead credits and military exemptions for eligible owner-occupied residential properties.
The economy is driven by manufacturing, healthcare, and agricultural processing, with Fort Dodge acting as the central employment node.
The county is served by major highway corridors including U.S. Highway 20 and U.S. Highway 169, facilitating regional transit.
The Webster County Assessor is responsible for the valuation of all taxable real property within the county jurisdiction.
Parcels are subject to various taxing districts including school districts, county government, and municipal levies.
- Fort Frenzy4.17.5 mi
- Boone Speedway4.728.9 mi
- Dolliver Memorial State Park4.73.7 mi
- Brushy Creek State Recreation Area4.69.3 mi
- Kennedy Park4.613 mi
- Gypsum City OHV Park4.55.2 mi
- Fort 8 Theatre4.47.6 mi
- Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad & James H. Andrew Railroad Museum4.526.5 mi
- The Fort Museum and Frontier Village4.56.7 mi
- Paradox4.726.9 mi
- Jefferson Telecom4.928.9 mi
- Dolliver Memorial State Park4.73.7 mi
- Brushy Creek State Recreation Area4.69.3 mi
- Kennedy Park4.613 mi
- Gypsum City OHV Park4.55.2 mi
- Briggs Woods Park4.618.3 mi
- Briggs Woods Golf Course4.518.1 mi
- Hy-Vee Grocery Store4.47.4 mi
- Marshalls4.37.4 mi
- Hy-Vee Grocery Store4.317.4 mi
- Kohl's4.27.1 mi
Theme parks, venues, golf, airports, museums, water and shopping across the area from Google Maps, ranked by popularity within the radius shown.
Data retrieved from Census Reporter and U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts.
applies when — Property must be occupied as the owner's homestead
Provides legal protections for the homestead property, including specific exemptions from judicial sale for debts, as defined under state law.
Iowa Code Chapter 561
Iowa generally requires judicial foreclosure proceedings. Borrowers are entitled to a notice of right to cure default prior to the initiation of foreclosure actions. Redemption rights exist post-sale unless specific statutory exceptions (such as foreclosure without redemption for nonagricultural land) are met.
Iowa Code Chapter 654
The taxable value is determined by applying an assessment limitation (rollback) to the assessed market value. The limitation is calculated annually to restrict the growth in aggregate taxable value for the residential class to 3% statewide.
Iowa Code Chapter 441; Iowa Department of Revenue Property Tax Overview
≈ $5,220/yr on a $174,000 median
Governance registry — every jurisdiction re-researches on a rolling 90-day cycle. Property reports compose these inherited burdens into a per-parcel ledger with conditional determinations. Informational only — not legal advice.