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Residents Flee West Des Moines Suburb at Alarming Rate
14 Nov
Summary
- For every 18 people moving into West Des Moines, 100 are searching to move out
- Waukee has become Iowa's top move-to suburb, outpacing West Des Moines
- West Des Moines homes are pricey, with an average value of $319K
According to a recent analysis, residents of West Des Moines, Iowa, may be attempting to leave the suburb at a higher rate than anywhere else in the United States as of November 2025. The moving research platform moveBuddha found that for every 18 people using the site to search for information about moving into West Des Moines, 100 were searching for details on moving out.
Once ranked as one of America's best places to live as recently as 2016, West Des Moines has since been overtaken in popularity by other suburbs in the region. Waukee, in particular, has become the state's top move-to suburb, pulling in more new building permits than West Des Moines. Additionally, with an average home value of $319,000, West Des Moines is considered pricey by Des Moines standards, and new residents are not seeing an affordability edge in the mature suburb, where the average home dates back to 1993.
Despite the apparent interest in leaving the area, West Des Moines' overall population has continued to grow largely unabated since 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. However, an analysis from U.S. News and World Report has identified the move from West Des Moines to Phoenix, Arizona, as the third most popular city-to-city migration path in the country, with analysts guessing the residents were "likely seeking warmer year-round weather, perhaps for retirement."
