Mortgage Approval and Denial Rates in Iowa (2025 HMDA)
Mortgage denial rates in Iowa: lenders acted on 110,066 mortgage applications in Iowa in 2025 and denied 12.6% of them, down from 13.2% in 2024. The national denial rate was 17.7%.
Applications acted on
110,066
Loans originated
75,693
Denial rate
12.6%
Median loan
$135,000
Iowa against the national picture
Most-reported denial reason in Iowa: Credit history.
Counties ranked by denial rate
| County | Applications | Denial rate | Median loan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taylor County | 125 | 22.4% | $105,000 |
| Keokuk County | 285 | 21.8% | $95,000 |
| Adair County | 182 | 21.4% | $115,000 |
| Monona County | 254 | 21.3% | $115,000 |
| Louisa County | 212 | 20.8% | $105,000 |
| Lee County | 564 | 20.7% | $95,000 |
| Emmet County | 197 | 19.8% | $105,000 |
| Palo Alto County | 179 | 19.6% | $95,000 |
| Davis County | 169 | 19.5% | $115,000 |
| Lucas County | 356 | 19.4% | $105,000 |
| Union County | 367 | 19.3% | $95,000 |
| Montgomery County | 357 | 19.0% | $95,000 |
| Des Moines County | 813 | 18.9% | $105,000 |
| Franklin County | 123 | 18.7% | $105,000 |
| Fayette County | 594 | 18.2% | $85,000 |
| Buena Vista County | 470 | 18.1% | $115,000 |
| Hardin County | 456 | 17.8% | $105,000 |
| Jackson County | 464 | 17.5% | $125,000 |
| Cass County | 435 | 17.5% | $105,000 |
| Muscatine County | 1,256 | 17.4% | $105,000 |
| Jefferson County | 447 | 17.4% | $115,000 |
| Greene County | 254 | 17.3% | $105,000 |
| Wayne County | 169 | 17.2% | $95,000 |
| Appanoose County | 333 | 17.1% | $105,000 |
| Floyd County | 223 | 17.0% | $85,000 |
| Osceola County | 118 | 16.9% | $125,000 |
| Harrison County | 544 | 16.7% | $145,000 |
| Boone County | 1,118 | 16.5% | $135,000 |
| Marshall County | 1,018 | 16.4% | $105,000 |
| Calhoun County | 207 | 16.4% | $105,000 |
| Page County | 427 | 16.2% | $105,000 |
| Cedar County | 818 | 16.1% | $115,000 |
| Hamilton County | 347 | 16.1% | $125,000 |
| Winneshiek County | 285 | 16.1% | $155,000 |
| Cherokee County | 267 | 16.1% | $115,000 |
| Henry County | 420 | 16.0% | $115,000 |
| Winnebago County | 212 | 16.0% | $135,000 |
| Decatur County | 208 | 15.9% | $95,000 |
| Wright County | 236 | 15.7% | $105,000 |
| Woodbury County | 3,093 | 15.6% | $145,000 |
| Mitchell County | 141 | 15.6% | $145,000 |
| Monroe County | 178 | 15.2% | $95,000 |
| Pocahontas County | 159 | 15.1% | $105,000 |
| Clinton County | 1,220 | 14.8% | $115,000 |
| Jones County | 622 | 14.8% | $125,000 |
| Howard County | 162 | 14.8% | $120,000 |
| Cerro Gordo County | 805 | 14.7% | $145,000 |
| Shelby County | 402 | 14.7% | $115,000 |
| Mahaska County | 665 | 14.6% | $115,000 |
| Webster County | 928 | 14.5% | $95,000 |
| Wapello County | 905 | 14.5% | $85,000 |
| Clayton County | 475 | 14.3% | $105,000 |
| Kossuth County | 342 | 14.3% | $105,000 |
| Lyon County | 336 | 14.3% | $165,000 |
| Pottawattamie County | 3,933 | 14.2% | $145,000 |
| Audubon County | 149 | 14.1% | $105,000 |
| Plymouth County | 616 | 14.0% | $155,000 |
| Clay County | 401 | 14.0% | $115,000 |
| Madison County | 820 | 13.9% | $175,000 |
| Crawford County | 375 | 13.9% | $105,000 |
| O'Brien County | 281 | 13.9% | $135,000 |
| Buchanan County | 800 | 13.8% | $105,000 |
| Clarke County | 375 | 13.6% | $115,000 |
| Marion County | 1,008 | 13.5% | $165,000 |
| Ringgold County | 141 | 13.5% | $105,000 |
| Guthrie County | 469 | 13.4% | $155,000 |
| Fremont County | 236 | 13.1% | $115,000 |
| Dubuque County | 3,620 | 12.7% | $135,000 |
| Chickasaw County | 348 | 12.6% | $115,000 |
| Allamakee County | 264 | 12.5% | $155,000 |
| Jasper County | 1,507 | 12.4% | $145,000 |
| Polk County | 20,715 | 12.3% | $165,000 |
| Washington County | 951 | 12.3% | $105,000 |
| Worth County | 140 | 12.1% | $120,000 |
| Humboldt County | 261 | 11.9% | $115,000 |
| Sac County | 203 | 11.8% | $105,000 |
| Scott County | 6,504 | 11.5% | $155,000 |
| Iowa County | 641 | 11.4% | $105,000 |
| Warren County | 2,734 | 11.3% | $205,000 |
| Linn County | 9,617 | 11.1% | $135,000 |
| Carroll County | 423 | 11.1% | $115,000 |
| Black Hawk County | 5,279 | 10.8% | $95,000 |
| Story County | 2,362 | 10.8% | $175,000 |
| Delaware County | 609 | 10.7% | $135,000 |
| Poweshiek County | 764 | 10.6% | $105,000 |
| Tama County | 440 | 10.5% | $105,000 |
| Mills County | 698 | 10.2% | $165,000 |
| Ida County | 158 | 10.1% | $85,000 |
| Sioux County | 793 | 9.6% | $205,000 |
| Dallas County | 5,451 | 9.4% | $245,000 |
| Hancock County | 202 | 9.4% | $145,000 |
| Butler County | 460 | 9.3% | $100,000 |
| Grundy County | 496 | 8.9% | $105,000 |
| Benton County | 1,085 | 8.8% | $115,000 |
| Dickinson County | 783 | 8.4% | $225,000 |
| Johnson County | 5,808 | 8.2% | $175,000 |
| Bremer County | 1,018 | 7.8% | $115,000 |
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Reading these numbers
The denial rate counts applications the lender acted on, so withdrawn files do not inflate it. A high rate does not automatically mean strict lenders: counties with many first-time or lower-income applicants tend to show higher denial rates because of debt-to-income and credit-history thresholds, which are the two reasons lenders report most often. Median loan amount and median applicant income are computed from the same application records, so they describe who is applying — not who ends up buying.
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, HMDA Data Browser (2025 loan application register). Latest observation 2026-08-23.