October Home Prices Up and Sales Down Over Last Year

This week, the Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR) reported that residential sales in the city of Chicago decreased by -0.9% since last year, with 2,109 sales in October 2015 compared to 2,128 sales in October 2014. The median sale price increased by 1.7% ($240,000 in October 2015 compared to $236,000 in October 2014). Homes in the city of Chicago were on the market an average of 49 days, down slightly from 51 days last October.

In IAR’s press release, Dan Wagner, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and senior vice president for government relations for the Inland Real Estate Group, said, “The start of the final quarter of the year was marked by plunging inventories, and that’s having a corresponding impact on sales and prices. What’s crystal clear is there is still very keen interest in buying this late in the selling season, and there’s no indication that the zeal to own a home is diminishing.”

The following charts summarize median price and sales trends:

The University of Illinois Regional Economics Applications Laboratory estimates positive increases in Chicago area* annual sales levels, with changes ranging from 5.4% to 6.3% on average compared to last year for November, December, and January. Other notes from the forecast report include:

• Median prices in the Chicago area are estimated to post year-over-year gains of +7.7% in November, +9.5% in December, and +8.3% in January.
• In October 2015, at the previous 12 month average sales rate, the Chicago area had enough housing inventory for 3.8 months (down from 4.9 months a year ago). However, months of supply are increasing for homes above $700K in both Illinois and the Chicago area.
• The pending home sales index, a leading indicator based on signed contracts, stands at 159.1 in the Chicago area, down 9.6% from one month ago and down 7.1% from October 2014 (100=average pending sales in 2008).

The press release, city of Chicago report, and forecast report are available on the IAR website.

_{*Chicago PMSA: Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties}

_{Note: The Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR) transitioned to a new reporting system in December 2012 that resulted in revisions to previously reported data. IAR data is subject to revision by reporting Multiple Listing Service affiliates. For more information, please refer to the IAR website.}

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