Ely, Iowa

2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026

ALMANAC

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.1–0.4% to the 839 homes here.

1–3

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count.Sources: Computed by the Almanac

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Population

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

2,366

people, the 147th-largest of Iowa's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Iowa's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
The workday

Nearly every job here goes to someone who lives somewhere else.

97.6%

of 290 jobs located in Ely are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
Rent

Median rent is up 47% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$936

a month. Iowa's median is $972.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $663 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Linn County.
- $694 Tract 28
- $1,357 Tract 16
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
Room to build

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

$1,203–$1,805

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $936 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
Building

49% of the housing here was built before 2000.
- 49% of all homes were built before 2000
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.1–0.4% to the 839 homes here.

1–3

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
Home value

A median home costs 50% more than Iowa's.

$311,900

median home value in Ely.
- $311,900 Ely
- $208,000 Iowa
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Ely, Iowa

Ely,
Iowa.

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

Nearly every job here goes to someone who lives somewhere else.

Median rent is up 47% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

49% of the housing here was built before 2000.

Closing the gap would add 0.1–0.4% to the 839 homes here.

A median home costs 50% more than Iowa's.

Every number came from a public source, with its date.

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

Nearly every job here goes to someone who lives somewhere else.

Median rent is up 47% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

49% of the housing here was built before 2000.

Closing the gap would add 0.1–0.4% to the 839 homes here.

A median home costs 50% more than Iowa's.

More from here

ZIP codes in Ely

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