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Iowa Has Fence Viewers. I Had No Idea.
I’ve been selling real estate for over ten years, and last month I ran into an Iowa property law I had never heard of.
A neighboring owner insisted my sellers were responsible for fencing between two properties. That sent us somewhere I’d never been. We had to figure out who owned the fence, where the property line actually was, and whether one owner can legally require another to build or maintain it.
First, the disclaimer: I’m a Realtor, not a surveyor or an attorney. So I started calling the right people. Here’s what surprised me.
Iowa has something called fence viewers. Under Iowa Code Chapter 359A, the township trustees where a dispute arises serve as the fence viewers. They hear partition fence disagreements between adjoining landowners and issue a written order spelling out who is responsible for which part of the fence. Either owner can ask for that process in writing, the viewers give written notice of a hearing, and the order is filed with the township clerk. If an owner disagrees, there is an appeal path to district court.
For anyone buying or selling land, acreage, or a home on the edge of town, here’s why this matters. A fence is one of those details that rarely shows up in a listing, but it can come up the moment a neighbor has an opinion. Before you list or buy, it helps to know a few things: where the property line actually is (a survey answers that, a guess doesn’t), whether a fence exists and who built it, and whether any past agreement with a neighbor was ever put in writing.
If a question like this comes up in your transaction, bring in the right professionals early: a surveyor for the line, and an attorney for what the law requires of each owner. The rules above are a general overview, not legal advice, and your township office is a good place to start if you have a real dispute.
Ten-plus years in and this was brand-new information. Being good at this job doesn’t mean knowing everything. Sometimes it means knowing who to call when you don’t.
Got a weird situation or a question you think might stump me? Reach out. Call or text (515) 290-7950.
Thinking about buying, selling, or building in the Ames area? Call or text me at (515) 290-7950, or email sievers@c21sre.com. Seen one of my videos? Comment MATT on it and I’ll get back to you.
Matt Sievers, REALTOR®, Sievers Real Estate Team with CENTURY 21 Signature Real Estate
Two Kinds of Buyers (and Why Only One of Them Ends Up With a House)
Most people don’t lose out on a house because of money. They lose out because they’re looking for something that doesn’t exist.
After more than ten years of helping people buy homes around Ames and Story County, I’ve noticed there are really two kinds of buyers.
The first kind knows exactly what they need. Number of bedrooms. A garage. A price range they’re comfortable with. Maybe a shorter drive to work or room for a shop out back. We sit down, get clear on those non-negotiables, and go find it. When the right house shows up, they recognize it and they buy it.
The second kind is chasing perfect. The kitchen from one house, the yard from another, the location from a third, all at a price that doesn’t match any of them. I get it. Buying a home is a big decision and nobody wants to settle. But I have to be honest with you: perfect isn’t a real listing category. Every home is a set of trade-offs, and the buyers who do well are the ones who decide ahead of time which trade-offs they can live with.
Here’s a simple exercise I walk clients through. Write down three lists: must-haves, nice-to-haves, and deal-breakers. Keep the must-have list short. If it’s longer than five or six items, some of those are probably nice-to-haves in disguise. That one sheet of paper makes every showing faster and every decision clearer.
My job isn’t to talk anybody into a house. It’s to give you enough information that when the right one shows up, you actually know it. Pricing, condition, what similar homes have sold for, what the inspection is likely to turn up. That way you’re deciding on facts, not nerves.
And sometimes, yes, I’m the guy telling you, “Nope. Not this one. Keep looking.” That’s still doing my job.
So which buyer are you? If you’re not sure, let’s figure it out together. Reach out to me directly and we’ll put your list on paper before you ever walk into a showing.
Thinking about buying, selling, or building in the Ames area? Call or text me at (515) 290-7950, or email sievers@c21sre.com. Seen one of my videos? Comment MATT on it and I’ll get back to you.
Matt Sievers, REALTOR®, Sievers Real Estate Team with CENTURY 21 Signature Real Estate
New Construction in Slater: Two Trailside Townhomes Coming Spring 2027
Slater is getting two new townhomes, and I’m excited to be the one listing them. Both are part of the Trailside development, and both are currently being built, with completion expected in spring 2027.
Here’s what you need to know. 345 Sheffield Avenue is priced at $428,000, with about 1,850 square feet of living space and a 462-square-foot garage. 1000 Clark Street is the corner-lot unit, priced at $458,000, also with about 1,850 square feet of living space and a larger 508-square-foot garage.
Both homes have a heated garage with EV charger preparation and a generator hookup. The charger and generator themselves aren’t included, but the hard part is already taken care of.
The planned finishes include solid surface countertops, painted wood cabinetry, a dishwasher, disposal, range and refrigerator, carpet and luxury vinyl plank flooring, a gas fireplace, and a walk-in tiled primary shower. The exteriors combine vinyl siding and brick. Heating is forced air with central air conditioning, and each home comes with a one-year builder warranty.
Because these homes are being built, buyers who purchase before certain items are ordered can choose their own interior paint, flooring, cabinetry, tile, countertops, lighting and fixtures, and appliances. That’s a real advantage of buying early.
There will be a homeowners association, with estimated dues of $150 to $200 per month. It hasn’t been set up yet, so I’ll share the details once they’re finalized.
Slater sits right on the High Trestle Trail, which runs about 25 miles through Ankeny, Sheldahl, Slater, Madrid, and Woodward and is open year-round. Plumbing and slab work are scheduled over the coming weeks, with framing planned for January, and I’ll be sharing updates along the way.
Want the floor plans or a closer look at either home? Send me a message or call (515) 290-7950, and I’ll get you everything I have.
Interested in a Trailside townhome? Text me “Trailside” at (515) 290-7950 and I’ll send details as each one lists.
The Appraisal Came In $40,000 Low. Here’s What Happened Next.
There’s a version of this story where my sellers lose forty thousand dollars. Here’s why that didn’t happen.
I was the listing agent. The appraisal came in $40,000 below our contract price, and my first question wasn’t “How do we fix this?” It was “Is this appraisal actually accurate?” I didn’t think it was.
So I pulled the comps and gathered everything that supported our value. I started talking with the buyer’s agent, the lender, and the appraiser. Once I understood where everyone stood, we laid out the options: accept the reduction, challenge the appraisal, ask the buyers to bring more money to closing, or have my sellers walk away and relist.
Here’s what most people don’t realize about that moment. My job wasn’t to pick an option for my sellers. My job was to make sure every option was on the table, with the risks and consequences of each one attached. Then they decide. That’s how this is supposed to work. It’s their home and their money.
So what actually happened? The buyers came back to within five thousand dollars of the original price. My sellers accepted, and we closed.
There was a ton happening behind the scenes that nobody ever saw: the phone calls, the comp research, the back-and-forth between all parties. That’s usually where the real work gets done, and it’s a big part of why it’s worth hiring a Realtor in the first place.
If you’re buying or selling in Ames or anywhere in Story County and want somebody who’s going to dig in when things get complicated, send me a message. I’d be glad to talk it through.
Thinking about buying, selling, or building in the Ames area? Call or text me at (515) 290-7950, or email sievers@c21sre.com. Seen one of my videos? Comment MATT on it and I’ll get back to you.
Matt Sievers, REALTOR®, Sievers Real Estate Team with CENTURY 21 Signature Real Estate
What Does It Actually Cost to Live in Ames, Iowa?
If you’re relocating to Ames — for Iowa State, for a job, for a fresh start — the question underneath all the other questions is usually: can I actually afford to live there?
Short answer: Ames tends to run below the national average on overall cost of living, generally cited somewhere in the range of 5-12% lower depending on the source and what’s included in the comparison. Housing is the biggest piece of that gap. You’ll see different median home value figures depending on which site you check — anywhere from the high $200,000s to closer to $400,000 as of mid-2026 — because these tools pull from different data sets and property mixes. That’s a real limitation of any online cost-of-living tool, mine included; the honest answer is that the right number depends on the specific neighborhood, size, and condition you’re looking for.
A few other data points worth knowing: basic monthly utilities have been estimated around $150-160 for a typical household, and grocery and transportation costs both run a few percentage points below the national average. None of that is exact for your specific situation, but it’s a reasonable starting point for a budget conversation.
What the numbers don’t capture is the day-to-day stuff: a 13-minute average commute, a small-town feel with a research university’s worth of amenities, and a housing market that, while competitive during the Iowa State move-in season, is still meaningfully more approachable than most comparable college towns.
If you’re relocating and trying to figure out what a realistic budget actually looks like here, that’s a conversation worth having with someone who knows this market day to day — not just a cost-of-living calculator.
Relocating to Ames? Send me a message and I’ll give you a straight, current answer for the specific area and budget you’re working with.
How Much House Can You Actually Afford in Ames or Story County?
Before you look at a single listing, there’s one conversation that saves everyone time: what can you actually afford, not what a website’s calculator guesses you can afford.
Those are two different numbers, and mixing them up is the single most common thing I see trip up first-time buyers. A calculator looks at income and a rough interest rate. A real lender looks at your full financial picture — debt, credit, how much you’re putting down — and gives you an actual pre-approval number, which is what a seller takes seriously when your offer lands on their desk.
Down payments on a typical loan can range anywhere from 3% to 20% of the purchase price, depending on the loan type. Put down less than 20% on a conventional loan and you’ll likely carry private mortgage insurance until you build enough equity — not a dealbreaker, just a cost worth knowing about upfront rather than discovering at closing.
There’s also a difference between being pre-qualified (a quick, rough estimate based on what you tell a lender) and pre-approved (a lender has actually verified your income, credit, and assets). Pre-qualified gets you started. Pre-approved is what gets your offer taken seriously in this market.
The exact numbers — your rate, your program, your real monthly payment — are a conversation for a local lender, not a blog post. But the framework above is the same for almost every buyer I work with, and it’s worth understanding before that first showing, not after you’ve already fallen for a house outside your range.
I can point you to a couple of local lenders I trust to run your real numbers — send me a message and let’s get you started the right way.
What’s My Ames Home Actually Worth Right Now?
The question I get more than any other is some version of: what’s my house actually worth?
Here’s the honest answer: it depends on more than an algorithm can see. As of mid-2026, homes in the Ames area have been listing at a median price in the high $300,000s, spending roughly five weeks on the market before going under contract. That’s a real number — but it’s a citywide average across every size, condition, and location, and your specific street, lot, and finish level move that number up or down more than most sellers expect.
An online estimate pulls from public records and recent sales in a wide radius. It doesn’t know that your kitchen was redone in 2023, that your street backs up to green space instead of a busy road, or that homes in your specific subdivision have sold faster than the citywide average all year. Those details are exactly what separates a number that looks fine on a screen from a number that actually holds up when a real buyer walks through your door.
A real pricing conversation starts with an actual walkthrough and a look at what’s sold — and what hasn’t — in your specific area over the last 90 days, not the last year. Pricing too high costs you the buyers who are looking in your true range during the first, most important weeks on the market. Pricing accurately from day one is what gets a home in front of the most buyers when interest is highest.
If you’re even loosely thinking about listing in the next six to twelve months, it costs nothing to find out where you actually stand.
Send me a message and I’ll walk your property and give you a straight, no-pressure number — not an algorithm’s guess.
Why Local Market Knowledge Beats a Zillow Comp Every Time
One backs up to the wrong thing. One has a builder people trust. One has a floor plan buyers keep coming back to. One has resale appeal, and one doesn’t.
None of that shows up in a basic online comp search. A newer agent, or a buyer doing their own research, can pull comps just fine — the data is public and the tools are everywhere. But an experienced local agent knows which comp actually matters, and just as importantly, which ones don’t, and why.
Ten years in this market is the difference between knowing a price and understanding a price. Two homes can look nearly identical on paper — same square footage, same bed and bath count, similar year built — and sell for meaningfully different amounts because of details that never make it into a listing sheet.
This is the part of the job that doesn’t show up in an app. It’s knowing which street floods a little more than people expect, which builder’s finishes hold up, which floor plan buyers ask for by name three years later. That knowledge only comes from being in the market, consistently, for a long time.
It’s why two nearly identical homes can have two very different outcomes, and why the agent you choose matters more than most people assume going in.
Whether you’re buying or selling, I’m happy to walk you through what the comps in your area actually mean — reach out anytime.
The 30-45 Day Countdown: Contract to Closing
First-time buyers spend months preparing to purchase. Then they go under contract, and suddenly they’re scheduling inspections, securing insurance, signing paperwork, arranging utilities, and packing — all at the same time.
That 30 to 45 day window between contract and closing goes by faster than almost anyone expects. It’s easy to assume the hard part is over once an offer is accepted, but this stretch is where a lot of the real work — and a lot of the stress, if you’re unprepared — actually happens.
Inspections need to be scheduled quickly and responded to. Insurance has to be lined up before closing, not the week of. Paperwork arrives in waves, often with tight turnaround windows. And somewhere in the middle of all of it, you’re still trying to pack an entire household.
Knowing what’s coming, and roughly when, makes all the difference between a stressful month and a manageable one. None of it is complicated in isolation — it’s the compressed timeline that catches people off guard.
This is exactly the kind of thing that’s easy to explain in five minutes but hard to Google your way through in the moment.
If you’re getting close to going under contract, DM me and I’ll walk you through exactly what to expect, step by step.
What Happens After Your House Sells in Four Days
Most sellers think the hard part is finding a buyer. It’s not.
The hard part is what happens after your house sells in four days and you’re standing in your kitchen thinking: well, now what. I see this every single spring. Someone lists, gets multiple offers, feels like a genius. Then it hits them — where are we actually moving? Can we afford what we want next? Do we need a bridge loan? Who are the movers? And, not as a joke, what does the dog do for the next 30 days?
Here’s what I tell every seller before we do anything else: pretend your house sold yesterday. Walk me through exactly what happens next. If you’re stammering, looking at the ceiling, or saying something like “well, we’d probably just figure it out,” you’re not ready to list yet. And that’s completely okay — that’s exactly what I’m here for.
The sellers who walk away from a sale feeling good are, without exception, the ones who had this conversation before the sign ever went in the yard. Not after the offers start coming in.
It’s a five-minute conversation that saves weeks of scrambling later, and it’s one of the most overlooked parts of selling a house.
Comment “Matt” and that’s exactly where we start — no pressure, and yes, you can bring the dog into the conversation too.
