| 🎃 TRICK-OR-TREAT • SATURDAY, OCT. 31 • 6–8 PM • Your City’s Times → |
| | Hi there, Happy October! The leaves are turning, the porches are filling up with pumpkins, and it’s one of our favorite months in Des Moines. Inside this issue: trick-or-treat times (the whole metro is going out the same night for the first time!), two new listings, your September market update, and one of Kelly’s favorite fall day trips. 🐶 A must-see that everyone’s talking about: We were touring a West Des Moines home when we opened what we thought was a crawl space under the stairs… and found a luxury apartment built just for the dog — complete with its own little door. The reel has been watched more than 525,000 times! Would your dog move in?  🎬 That’s just a taste — we post funny skits, behind-the-scenes moments, and real estate reels all the time. Follow along for a laugh (and to see what Rob and Kelly are really like)! |
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|  | 🧟 Happy Halloween! Don’t worry, we clean up nicely. (That’s us a few years back, participating in Halloween on the Hill!) Real estate is serious business… most days. 😉 And if someone you know is thinking about buying or selling, send them our way — we promise we’ll show up out of costume! Have a safe and happy Halloween! |
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| 🏚 Can’t wait until Saturday? Halloween on the Hill Friday, Oct. 30 • 6:30–8:30 PM • Sherman Hill & Hoyt Sherman Place The night before trick-or-treat, Des Moines’ historic Sherman Hill neighborhood goes all out: decorated homes, a haunted driveway, a pirate ship, live performers, food vendors, and nonprofit pop-ups supporting local charities. It’s free and family-friendly — and yes, it’s where our zombie photo was taken! Tip: Several streets close for the event, so carpool or park in the UnityPoint lots nearby. 🎃 Halloween on the Hill Details → |
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| 🎃 Trick-or-Treat Saturday, October 31 Goodbye, Beggars’ Night! After 85+ years of trick-or-treating on October 30, the metro has officially moved to Halloween night — and 2026 is the first year every community goes out on the same night. (Telling a joke at the door is still encouraged. 😉) 6:00–8:00 PM in these metro communities: 🎃 Adel 🎃 Altoona 🎃 Ankeny 🎃 Clive 🎃 Des Moines 🎃 Grimes 🎃 Johnston | 🎃 Norwalk 🎃 Pleasant Hill 🎃 Polk City 🎃 Urbandale 🎃 Waukee 🎃 West Des Moines 🎃 Windsor Heights |
A few exceptions: Ames — Friday, Oct. 30, 5:30–7:30 PM (moved for the ISU home game) Winterset — Friday, Oct. 30, 5:00–7:00 PM |
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| Market Snapshot | $312,000 Median Price | 29 Days on Market | 4,797 Active Listings | | | | |
| September brought the shift we usually see as summer turns to fall: more choices for buyers. Active listings climbed to 4,797, up from 4,096 in August — roughly 700 more homes on the market. With more to choose from, buyers are taking a little more time, and the median days on market stretched from 22 to 29. Prices held fairly steady, with the median sale price dipping slightly to $312,000 from $319,725 in August — still close to where prices have held all summer. Activity eased slightly, with 1,148 homes closing (down from 1,290) and 846 going under contract (down from 902). That's a normal seasonal slowdown, not a stall. For buyers, it means more options and a little more room to negotiate. For sellers, it means pricing and presentation matter more than they did this spring — a well-prepared home still stands out. |
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| Featured Listings |  🏠 Featured Listing East Village Downtown Condo East Village • Downtown Des Moines $410,000 2 Bedrooms | 12-Foot Ceilings | Skyline Views Soaring 12-foot ceilings, walls of windows, and downtown skyline views from the balcony — just up the street from the East Village. Inside you’ll find a generous kitchen with plenty of cabinets, an oversized primary suite, a beautifully tiled walk-in shower, and in-unit laundry. Downtown living at its best. ▶ Watch the Video Tour → |  ✨ Just Listed Spacious West Des Moines Townhome 6980 Cody Drive, Unit #47 • West Des Moines $335,000 3 Bedrooms | 3 Baths | 2,700+ Finished Sq Ft Easy, low-maintenance living in Waukee schools. The open floor plan features a vaulted living room full of natural light, a main-floor primary suite with a walk-in closet, and main-floor laundry. Step out onto the south-facing deck overlooking open green space, with a multi-use trail just steps away. The finished lower level with daylight windows adds a big family room and a private third bedroom with its own full bath — and you’re just minutes from Jordan Creek. 📅 Open House: Sunday, Oct. 4 • 11 AM–1 PM
HOA covers exterior maintenance, lawn care, snow removal & trash. Schedule a Showing → |
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| Fall Fun Around Town | Fall is festival season in central Iowa. Here are a few worth putting on the calendar: | 🍂 On the Calendar Windsor Heights Fall Festival — Saturday, Oct. 3 • Colby Park
A free, family-friendly kickoff to fall right in the heart of the metro. Apple & Pumpkin Fest at Wills Family Orchard — Weekends through Oct. 25 • Adel
U-pick apples and pumpkins, cider donuts, and farm activities for all ages. Madison County Covered Bridge Festival — Oct. 10–11 • Winterset
Parade, covered bridge tours, a car show, and plenty of food and crafts. (Kelly’s favorite — more below!) Vintage & Made Fair — Saturday, Oct. 10 • Dallas County Fairgrounds
Antiques, vintage home décor, handmade goods, and local eats. Iowa Home Expo — Oct. 16–18 • Iowa State Fairgrounds
Free admission, and a great place to gather ideas if a remodel or a move is on your mind. | 🍂 Kelly’s Fall Day Trip: Winterset The Madison County Covered Bridge Festival (Oct. 10–11) is one of my favorite weekends of the whole year. Take a scenic tour of the historic covered bridges, catch the parade, browse the craft and food vendors around the square, and stop by the car show on Sunday. It’s about 40 minutes from Des Moines and worth every mile. 🥄 And while you’re in town: save time for my favorite little shop, Spoons Full of Sugar Boutique. I’m in there more than I’d like to admit! They carry chic women’s clothing, shoes, handbags, and home décor — plus their signature one-of-a-kind jewelry handmade from vintage silver spoons, which makes the perfect gift. It’s just a couple of blocks south of the square. — Kelly |
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| Save the Date 🥧 Our Annual Pie Giveaway Tuesday, November 24 It’s one of our favorite traditions of the year — a little thank-you just in time for Thanksgiving. Keep an eye on your inbox: invitations to RSVP are coming soon! |
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| Stay Connected | We share local market updates, neighborhood deep-dives, listing tours, funny skits and reels, and behind-the-scenes Des Moines content all month long — not just in this newsletter. If you’d like more of it, follow along below. We’d love to have you in our community. |
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| A Heartfelt Thank You | To everyone who bought or sold a home with us this year — thank you. Truly. Getting to be part of such a big chapter in your life is the best part of this job, and we don’t take a single closing for granted. Whether we celebrated a first home, a fresh start, or a long-awaited move, it’s been an honor to walk through it with you. And if you’ve been thinking about a move yourself: fall is a great time to talk through your options before the holidays and the new year. We’d love to talk through what your home could bring — no pressure, just honest answers. | ⭐ We’re Built on Referrals Here’s a little secret about our business: the highest compliment we can ever receive is the name of a friend. So much of what we do comes from referrals from people like you, and we’re endlessly grateful for it. If someone you know is thinking about buying or selling, we’d be honored if you’d send them our way — we promise to take great care of them, just like we did for you. Thank you for trusting us, and for being part of our community.
— Rob & Kelly |
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| Curious what your home is worth today? Fall buyers are serious buyers — and with less competition than spring, a well-prepared home can really stand out. If you’ve wondered what your home could bring in today’s market, now’s a smart time to find out. We’ll walk you through a no-pressure home valuation and a clear plan to get top dollar. | |
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