Salem, IA housing market
The typical Salem home is worth about $230,000, up 12.8% in a year, close to the Iowa typical home.
Home values, sales, trends and how Salem compares with the towns next door — updated as new data is published.
Salem at a glance
Typical home value, 2022–2026
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| January | Salem | Iowa |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $186,000 | $211,000 |
| 2024 | $189,000 | $218,000 |
| 2025 | $204,000 | $228,000 |
| 2026 | $209,000 | $236,000 |
| August 2026 | $230,000 | $240,000 |
No new homes permitted in 2025
No permits for new homes were issued in Salem in 2025. The last year with any was 2024 (1 new home).
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| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2025 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2024 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $321,000 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2022 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $547,000 |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2018 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $215,000 |
| 2017 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $423,000 |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, through August 2026.
Owners, rent & taxes
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 · figures for a place this size carry wide margins of error.
A two-bedroom rents for about $950
HUD's Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Salem is $950 a month, utilities included: roughly what a modest, recently rented unit costs. Renters already in Salem pay a median of $922.
Studio $650 · 4 bedrooms $1,360
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, FY2026 Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (52649; Henry County, IA), weighted by land area. A Fair Market Rent is the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, August 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Listings link to their publishers.