If you can afford a $1 million home, you’d think the options would be unlimited.

But Rick Wanamaker, an agent with Iowa Realty, said those buyers usually have the hardest time finding their dream house.

“In Central Iowa, there just aren’t that many of these homes available,” he said. “And if you start to narrow your search to homes close to work or a certain style of home, the options become really small. The million-dollar buyer has the lowest selection.”

Wanamaker should know. Of the nine homes valued at more than $1 million in the Des Moines area, according to Christie’s Great Estates, Wanamaker and his wife, Marcia, are the agents for five.

Most of the potential buyers for these homes are from out of town, moving to Des Moines for job opportunities and finding housing prices much lower in the Midwest.

“Companies like Wells Fargo attract a lot of people from the coasts,” Marcia Wanamaker said. “Those people are used to spending a lot of money on a home, so when they move to Iowa, they realize they can get a lot of home for what they were paying before.”

Rick said many of the people looking for these homes are coming from California.

“They may have spent $2 million on their home in California, but when they come out here, they can spend half that much and get a bigger house,” he said. “They’re taking their big inflated real estate costs and moving here.”

Marcia said because of the limited market, those hoping to sell a high-end home must be patient, as these properties can stay on the market for several years before they sell.

“The housing market really has little effect on these homes,” she said. “It’s mostly immune to those ups and downs. But it usually takes much longer to find a buyer. It’s not unusual for a home to be on the market for one or two years.”

But the demand is there. For a French chateau-style home on Northwest 100th Street in Johnston the Wanamakers are selling, with an asking price of around $1.6 million, Rick said several people have shown interest.

“We’ve gotten many phone calls and had several people out to look at it,” he said.

Rick said the area could really use more high-end developments to offer more choices to consumers. But, because of the risk and long turnaround time involved in these types of developments, he doesn’t see any in the foreseeable future.

“It’s harder to move them quickly, so developers aren’t doing any high-priced subdivisions right now,” he said. “Plus, there really aren’t a lot of spots left to build. They’re going to have to start moving out into the country.”

Although the land the home sits on is an important factor, Rick said the home itself is still the biggest concern of home buyers.

“Executive homes are usually on smaller lots,” he said. “And location is still very, very important.”

Because the potential buyers are all over the country, the Internet is an important marketing tool, Rick said.

“We don’t put out a for-sale sign, and we don’t do open houses,” he said. “So the Internet is a key tool.”

The key, Rick said, is to make sure you’re gearing the sales approach to an audience that can afford one of these homes.

“Our buyers do a lot of research, so they know exactly what they want and exactly what they are getting,” he said. “You don’t do a lot of showings on these types of homes because you just don’t have the large number of interested parties. So when you do show it, you take your time and make it count.”

That’s why one of the Wanamakers is present at every showing, to ensure the details of the homes are pointed out to help the potential buyer make their decision.

Word-of-mouth is another aspect of selling a high-end home.

“We’ve been able to build a lot of relationships over the years,” Rick said. “That is very important when trying to sell one of these homes. Referrals are the key.”

But the main key, he said, is the house itself.

“If it is valued at more than a million, it’s usually a stunning home,” he said. “All you have to do is see it.”