Commercial Real Estate Market in Ames, IA
Updated monthly: sale, lease, property records, location trend, and more… · Last update: October 31
36 active listings and 1,677 off-market properties in Ames, IA. Commercial property asks $124/SF to buy and $21.75/SF/Yr to lease (based on 4 listings).
Market Trends
Ames, IA spans 115.5 square miles in Story County, Iowa. Figures below refresh monthly; last updated 31 October 2026.
Office
Office vacancy in Ames, IA runs 21.3% across the Midwest region in 2025, up from 13.7% in 2019.
Retail
Retail vacancy in Ames, IA runs 6.3% across the Midwest region in 2025, down from 8% in 2020.
Industrial
Industrial vacancy in Ames, IA runs 4.9% across the Midwest region in 2025, up from 4.4% in 2019. Nearly 1.6x the 2022 low of 3.1%.
Multifamily
Multifamily space in Ames, IA has a median asking sale price of $124/SF (based on 5 listings). Vacancy runs 8% across the Midwest region in 2025, up from 6.5% in 2022.
Zoning & Land Use
Land Use Mix share of zoned land by category
- Residential 40.6%
- Civic 35.4%
- Industrial 11.7%
- Commercial 11%
- Mixed use 1.2%
Largest Zones share of zoned land by district
Market overview
Demographics & Economy
Ames, IA has 70,648 residents in 29,640 households. Density runs 612 people per square mile. Median household income here is $61,599 and median gross rent $1,031 a month.
Tools
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median price per square foot for commercial property in Ames?
How much does it cost to lease commercial space in Ames?
Where does Realmo's Ames market data come from?
Methodology & data sources
- Asking prices and medians
- There are 27 active for-sale and 9 active for-lease listings in Ames, IA. The medians are based on 13 of the for-sale and 4 of the for-lease listings, those that state a price or rent per square foot. These are ASKING figures from live listings, not closed-transaction prices, and a figure resting on fewer than 10 listings says so where it is quoted.
- Vacancy rates
- Published per-sector market series, taken at the metro level where one exists and otherwise at the Census-region level — a chart reading "in <region> region" is a regional number, not this city's.
- Zoning and land use
- The current municipal zoning release: 18,416 zoned acres across 26 districts. Shares are of zoned land, so parcels the release leaves unclassified are excluded from the mix.
- Refresh
- The monthly aggregates close at the end of the previous month, so 31 October 2026 — not today — is the honest last update.
- Known limitations
- office vacancy is reported at Midwest region level, retail vacancy is reported at Midwest region level and industrial vacancy is reported at Midwest region level.
- Coverage
- Metrics below the 10-observation threshold fall back one geographic level. The geography used is named on each figure.
Compiled by the Realmo Data team · reviewed 31 October 2026 · How Realmo checks market page data · Report a data issue
