Predictions
1/5/2022Predictions. Prognostications. Forecasts. What does central Iowa’s future look like for the next 12 months? CITYVIEW tracked down four local experts and asked them just that.
Dave Price
Prediction: Tax cuts will be on the Republican agenda
Dave Price has worked on the WHO 13 News Team for the past 20 years. His main title there is political director, but he also has plenty of different titles.
Price predicts that 2022 will be a great year for Iowa Republicans.
“I think 2022, for Iowa Republicans, will be the year that they put together a package to further decrease income taxes for Iowans,” he says. Price adds that it is something that the state GOP has wanted to do for a while, but now that Iowa’s reserve fund is approaching $2 billion, they might get it done.
For the 2022 elections, Price thinks Iowans will continue to support Republicans. He explained that Republicans feel very comfortable going into the new year, and Democrats do not. However, he is still unsure what the Gubernatorial race will look like, but Price predicts that Iowa will do what they tend to do and side with the incumbent if she decides to run again.
Greg Edwards
Prediction: More entertainment options ahead
“We have a lot of solid things on the books right now,” says Greg Edwards, CEO of Catch Des Moines and the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau, regarding central Iowa’s lineup of events in 2022.
The upcoming schedule includes the State Games of America, the Farm Progress Show, a USA Gymnastics Championship, and the Ironman North American Championships, among other things.
“It’s certainly looking a lot more positive than in 2021,” says Edwards. “I guess that’s easy to say.”
But the jury is still out, according to Edwards, on what business travel will be like in 2022. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there has not been a whole lot of business travel into the metro, which is what fills up the hotels and restaurants in and around Des Moines. A lot of the biggest businesses are not traveling yet, and people are still returning to their desks. Time will tell.
Rachel Wood
Prediction: Possible economic pullback coming
Rachel Wood is a partner and financial advisor at Legacy Financial Group in Des Moines. She is an accredited investment fiduciary who joined in 2005 and became an official partner in 2020.
In both 2020 and 2021, the equity markets grew to new highs, so Wood would not be surprised to see an economic pullback in 2022.
“However, the market tends to follow corporate earnings, which are forecasted to be high in 2022, suggesting another good year ahead.”
The economy continues to make a comeback following the shutdown of 2020. Wood recognized that there is a lot of cash and demand right now.
She also sees innovation to be big in 2022, and it could act as a huge investment opportunity, but she cautions investors to be careful with their money next year. Wood thinks that inflation, interest rates, a stimulus cutback, and a proposed tax reform could affect where people should put their money.
Ted Weaver
Prediction: Still a seller’s market, but less frenetic
Ted Weaver is a broker for RE/MAX Concepts. He is also the 2021 president of DMAAR, the Des Moines Area Association of Realtors. His expertise comes from 14 years of experience in the field as a real estate agent. Weaver believes that the housing market in 2022 will begin to stabilize.
“We still believe that it’s going to be a robust market,” he says.
Going into 2022, Weaver predicts it will remain a seller’s market. However, he thinks there is going to be more inventory, meaning more options for buyers. This past year was strong for sellers and not so much for the buyers. The increase in options will help level out the market, to a certain extent.
“It won’t be fully balanced as it has been in the past,” says Weaver. “It will still be a seller’s market, but it will be less frenetic than it was last year.” ♦
