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Area Guide

Somerset Des Moines, IA

A peaceful village near a top university

Suburban Historic Charming

Situated just north of Iowa State University, Somerset is a tranquil community brimming with small-town charm. Somerset is largely residential, offering an array of apartments and houses available for rent in a suburban village atmosphere.

Residents enjoy the community’s lush greenery, multi-use trails, and family-friendly parks. Although Somerset is mostly residential, the community contains a commercial town center, where residents frequent various restaurants, shops, and cafes close to home. In addition to being convenient to Iowa State University, Somerset is just a short drive away from Downtown Ames and the Ames Municipal Airport.

Rent Trends

As of May 2026, the average apartment rent in Somerset is $862 for one bedroom, $983 for two bedrooms, and $1,167 for three bedrooms. Apartment rent in Somerset has increased by 3.1% in the past year.

  • 1 BR

  • 145 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $862/month

    Average Rent

  • 2 BR

  • 925 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $983/month

    Average Rent

  • 3 BR

  • 1,055 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $1,167/month

    Average Rent

Getting Around

Fairly Walkable

Walkability

40 / 100

Limited Public Transit

Transit

30 / 100

Exceptionally Drivable

Drivability

90 / 100

Fairly Bikeable

Bikeability

50 / 100

Daily Essentials

Supermarket Within a 15 Minute Walk

Groceries

60 / 100

Fair Restaurant Variety Nearby

Restaurants

40 / 100

Fair Café Variety Nearby

Cafes

40 / 100

Limited Variety of Shops Nearby

Shopping

20 / 100

Recreation

Very Large Amount of Park Space Nearby

Parks

80 / 100

Limited Wellness Amenity Variety Nearby

Wellness

20 / 100

Local Vibe

Mostly Calm Atmosphere

Vibrancy

20 / 100

Few to No Nightlife Options Nearby

Nightlife

10 / 100

Not Noisy

Quiet Score

100 / 100

Reviews of Somerset - Des Moines, IA

Niche Reviews Niche logo
4.5 2 Reviews

Niche User

10 years and 5 months agoNiche Review

Crimes do happen in Des Moines, but the police do help gratefully. If there is a crime, it is solved for efficiently and quickly, without having the public find out about it worrying the citizens.

See All Reviews on Niche.com

Points of Interest

Parks and Recreation

  • Fort Des Moines Park
  • Blank Park Zoo
  • Ewing Park
  • Easter Lake Park
  • Mac Rae Park

Commuter Rail

Military Bases

Airports

  • Des Moines International

Top Apartments in Somerset

Property Management Companies

Search Nearby Rentals

Methodology

† Our analysis of utilities, groceries, transportation, healthcare, home prices, and other goods and services is sourced from the Cost of Living Index, a respected benchmark published by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) that provides a thorough overview of living expenses across different regions.

Rent data is provided by CoStar Group’s Market Trend reports. As the industry leader in commercial real estate information, analytics, and news, CoStar conducts extensive research to produce and maintain a comprehensive database of commercial real estate information. We combine this data with public record to provide the most up-to-date rental information available.

Consumer goods, services, and home prices are sourced from the Cost of Living Index published by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER). The data on this page is updated quarterly. It was last published in February 2026.

Demographic information comes from Neustar and combines detailed address data with U.S. Census and American Community Survey statistics to produce reliable local estimates.