Iowa real estate transfer tax: $1.60 per $1,000 of price

What is the rate and what is taxed?

Chapter 428A imposes a tax on each deed or other writing that conveys Iowa real estate. When there is consideration and the actual market value is above $500, the tax is $0.80 for each $500, or fractional part of $500, above the first $500 (§ 428A.1(1)(a)(2)). The Polk County Recorder describes the same rule as “$1.60 per thousand” with the first $500 exempt.

“Consideration” means the full actual sale price, including a mortgage or lien the buyer assumes (§ 428A.1(1)(b)). The statute presumes the stated price includes personal property. If the deed states the dollar value of the personal property sold with the home, that amount is deducted before the tax is computed.

Corrective deeds that say so, and transfers with no consideration, carry no tax.

Who pays the transfer tax?

The law puts the liability on the person who grants, assigns, transfers or conveys the property (§ 428A.3). That is the seller. The statute does not say a buyer cannot agree to pay it; the purchase contract can allocate it differently. Check your contract.

The tax is paid to the county recorder of the county where the property sits, and the amount must appear on the face of the document (§ 428A.5). The recorder must refuse to record a taxable deed until the tax on the full price is paid (§ 428A.4).

Is there a county or city transfer tax?

Chapter 428A sets one rate, and neither it nor the Polk County Recorder’s pages list a separate county or city transfer tax. The money is split by law: the recorder keeps 17.25% in the county general fund and sends 82.75% to the Department of Revenue (§ 428A.8).

Which transfers are exempt?

Section 428A.2 lists exceptions. Common ones for homeowners:

Cancelling a debt secured by the property is not “actual consideration” for the family exemption, as long as the debt is no more than the property’s fair market value (§ 428A.2(11)). If you claim an exemption, a signed statement from the grantor, the grantee or an agent must be filed with or written on the deed (§ 428A.4(1)).

What documents go with the deed?

A declaration of value, signed by a seller, a buyer or their agents, must be submitted when the deed is recorded. It states the full price (§ 428A.1(2)–(3)). The recorder uses it for the state’s sales and assessment study and sends it to the assessor. Iowa also requires a groundwater hazard statement with each declaration of value, signed by a seller or the seller’s agent (§ 558.69). Senate File 2472, signed in May 2026, amends the declaration-of-value statute to cover factors that distort market value; read the current form before you file.

Worked example: three prices

The tax is $0.80 for each $500 or fraction above the first $500. A fraction counts as a full $500 block.

The recording fee is separate. In Polk County, a deed costs $12 on the first page and $5 for each added page, which includes a $5 transfer fee for each parcel (Polk County Recorder). For all closing lines, see closing costs in Iowa. For the local picture, see the Des Moines guide.