Illinois home sales see slight gain in October;

Statewide home prices increase 6.0 percent annually

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – November 20, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — Illinois home sales inched higher in October and median home prices continued upward with a statewide year-over-year increase of 6.0 percent, according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS®.

Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in October 2014 totaled 12,983 homes sold, up 0.2 percent from 12,952 in October 2013.

The statewide median price in October was $159,000, up 6.0 percent from October 2013 when the median price was $150,000. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.

“Illinois is seeing sales lift as we close out the year, a sign that despite the onset of winter, buyers are still very much interested in making a big ticket purchase,” said IAR President Jim Kinney, ABR, CRB, CRS, GRI, vice president of luxury home sales for Baird & Warner in Chicago. “For sellers, there’s continued good news as the state enjoys more than two years of median price gains coming out of the recession.”

The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central region was 4.03 percent in October 2014, down from 4.16 percent in September, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. In October 2013 it averaged 4.20 percent.

In the nine-county Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), home sales (single-family and condominiums) in October 2014 totaled 9,146 homes sold, down 3.3 percent from October 2013 sales of 9,462 homes.

The median price in October 2014 was $185,000 in the Chicago PMSA, up 5.7 percent from $175,000 in October 2013.

“The housing market appears to be pausing in its positive sales growth trends, not unusual for this time of the year,” noted Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, Director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory of the University of Illinois. “Prices continue to improve and the forecasts suggest growth in the next three months. Recent declines in the reduction in the foreclosure housing inventory suggest that we may have to wait until 2016 at the earliest for a return to pre-bubble levels.”

Fifty-two (52) of 102 counties in Illinois showed annual home sales increases in October 2014. Sixty (60) counties showed year-over-year median price increases including McLean, up 17.1 percent to $166,000; Madison, up 10.8 percent to $120,250; Peoria, up 10.2 percent to $118,750; Cook, up 8.6 percent to $190,000; and Champaign, up 6.9 percent to $135,000.

The city of Chicago saw an 8.6 percent year-over-year decrease in home sales in October 2014 with 2,082 sales, down from 2,279 in October 2013. The median price rose to $237,500 versus $218,000 in October 2013, an annual increase of 8.9 percent.

“Heading into the holiday season, what many see as an off-peak time for the housing market actually offers many incentives for buyers and sellers. Buyers who purchase a home now still have time to deduct home purchase costs on their taxes to reap benefits,” said Hugh Rider, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and co-president of Realty & Mortgage Co. “Median home prices continue to be strong, and sales times are swift. Less competition from other buyers also is a great motivator to put your home on the market now.”

Sales and price information is generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 30 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of Nov. 7, 2014 for the period Oct. 1 through Oct. 31, 2014. 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.

The Illinois Association of REALTORS® is a voluntary trade association whose 41,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, the Illinois Association of 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 and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.illinoisrealtor.org/marketstats.

MEDIA ONLY: Economist Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings will be available for media interviews between 9 a.m. and noon CST on Nov. 20.

Contact: Stephanie Sievers, 217-529-2600