Illinois home prices increase in November; Sales hold steady
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – (RealEstateRama) — Illinois home sales remained largely flat while the statewide median price shifted slightly higher in November as the market moved into the traditionally slower holiday season, according to Illinois REALTORS®.
Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in November 2017 totaled 11,604 homes sold, up 0.4 percent from 11,558 in November 2016.
The statewide median price in November was $185,000, up 4.2 percent from November 2016, when the median price was $177,500. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
“The market is experiencing what appears to be a pretty typical seasonal slowdown in many areas of the state,” said Illinois REALTORS® President Matt Difanis, ABR, CIPS, GRI, broker-owner of RE/MAX Realty Associates in Champaign. “Illinois is poised to end the year in positive sales and median price territory, and the final quarter of 2017 should provide a steady push into the new year as more properties come onto the market after the holidays.”
The time it took to sell a home in November averaged 58 days, down from 62 days a year ago. Available housing inventory totaled 52,819 homes for sale, a 12.0 percent decline from November 2016 when there were 60,005 homes on the market.
The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 3.90 percent in November 2017, remaining unchanged from the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. In November 2016, it averaged 3.77 percent.
In the nine-county Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), home sales (single-family and condominiums) in November 2017 totaled 8,119 homes sold, down 1.6 percent from November 2016 sales of 8,253 homes. The median price in November 2017 was $225,000 in the Chicago PMSA, an increase of 5.1 percent from $214,000 in November 2016.
“While positive price changes and significant increases in the pending sales index continue to characterize the Illinois and Chicago economies, the declining inventory, along with the state’s anemic job growth, cloud the outlook for 2018,” said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, Director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) at the University of Illinois.
According to the data, fifty-three (53) Illinois counties reported sales gains for November 2017 over previous-year numbers, including Peoria County, up 17.5 percent with 201 units sold; Winnebago County, up 9.6 percent with 307 units sold; and Will County, up 7.0 percent with 792 units sold. Sixty (60) counties showed year-over-year median price increases including St. Clair County, up 21.3 percent to $139,460; Lake County, up 14.6 percent to $235,000; and Cook County, up 4.6 percent to $227,000.
The city of Chicago saw year-over-year home sales decline slightly in November 2017 with 1,923 sales, compared to 1,937 in November 2016. The median price of a home in the city of Chicago in November 2017 was $259,500, down 0.2 percent compared to November 2016 when it was $260,000.
“Today’s numbers are reflective of both the seasonality of the market and the lack of clarity on the potential impact of tax reform,” said Rebecca Thomson, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and Vice President of Agent Development at @properties. “Sales prices seemingly stabilized in November, despite slight declines in inventory and market time, which reflects that pricing and demand are starting to level out, a trend that will likely continue into the new year.”
Sales and price information are generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 28 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of Dec. 7, 2017 for the period Nov. 1 through Nov. 30, 2017. The Chicago PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.
Illinois REALTORS® is a voluntary trade association whose more than 47,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, Illinois REALTORS® works to protect the rights of private property owners in the state by recommending and promoting legislation to safeguard and advance the interest of real property ownership.
Find Illinois housing stats, data, the University of Illinois REAL forecast and a forecast looking ahead to 2018 at www.illinoisrealtors.org/marketstats.
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MEDIA ONLY: Economist Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings will be available for media interviews between 9 a.m. and noon on Dec. 20. He can be reached at 312-320-3460.
Contact: Stephanie Sievers, 217-529-2600
