Average Market Time for Home Sales Dropped Below 100 Days in July as Metro Chicago Real Estate Market Accelerated, RE/MAX Reports
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) August 20, 2013 -- Eager homebuyers reduced the average market time for homes sold during July to only 97 days in the seven-county metropolitan Chicago real estate market. It is the first time the monthly average has dropped below 100 days since September 2006, the height of the housing boom, RE/MAX reports.
The faster pace of July sales was accompanied by robust residential sales totals and strong growth in home values. The RE/MAX analysis compared July sales this year to those of July 2012.
Home sales in the metro area totaled 11,739 units, up 36 percent from the prior July, while the median sales price climbed 19 percent to $204,975. The July results yielded the largest percentage increase in both transactions and median sales price of any month this year.
The supply of homes for sale expanded in July, rising to 34,472 detached and attached properties, which was the largest inventory number for any month this year. Based on the July sales pace, there is currently a 2.9 month supply of homes on the market. A year ago, there was a 5.6 month supply.
“What seems to be driving the housing market right now is a combination of factors, starting with strong demand from buyers and an inventory that remains quite limited compared to that demand,” said Laura Ortoleva, spokesperson for RE/MAX in northern Illinois. “Rising mortgage interest rates are another motivating factor for buyers. Rising rents are making the option of home ownership more attractive to renters.”
According to Ortoleva, home prices have moved higher, and while they may not be back to the levels of 2007 in most areas, they are encouraging homeowners interested in selling to list their properties.
“That has helped the inventory level a bit, but we are seeing what amount to sellers’ markets emerging in some parts of the metro area,” she said.
Sales of distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales) represented 29 percent of all July home sales, compared to 36 percent a year earlier and just 28 percent in June of this year.
The faster pace of sales was seen in all seven metro counties during July, as were increases in the number of homes sold and the median sales price.
Average market time was less than 110 days in six of the seven counties, most importantly in Cook County where it was just 90 days, including an average of 78 days in the City of Chicago. Cook County accounted for 55 percent of July home sales in the metro area.
The median sales price climbed at least 7 percent in all seven counties when compared to July of last year, led by a 23 percent increase in Cook County to a median of $208,900. The median price increases in the other counties were: 10 percent in DuPage to $241,000, 19 percent in Kane to $173,000, 18 percent in Kendall to $184,500, 15 percent in Lake to $220,000, 7 percent in McHenry to $165,000 and 16 percent in Will to $185,000. The median price in Chicago jumped 25 percent to $247,000.
The number of homes sold in July climbed at least 15 percent year-over-year in all seven counties and Chicago. Sales rose 54 percent in McHenry County to 525 units while they were up 46 percent in DuPage to 1,527 units, 43 percent in Kane to 821 units, 40 percent in Lake to 1,202 units, 36 percent in Will to 1,006 units, 33 percent in Cook to 6,441 units and 15 percent in Kendall to 216 units. Sales in Chicago rose 32 percent to 2,890 units.
Attached Homes
Strong demand for attached homes, primarily condominium apartments and townhouses, pushed sales up 39 percent in July when compared to the same month last year, with 4,270 units changing hands. Average market time was reduced to 93 days compared to 148 days in July 2012.
The sharp rebound in this segment of the housing market was reflected in the median sales price of $164,125, which was 23 percent higher than a year earlier.
The July results for each county compared to the same month last year are as follows.
Cook: sales rose 38 percent to 2,970 units; the median sales price increased 27 percent to $203,500. In Chicago, unit sales gained 38 percent to 1,821, and the median price advanced 15 percent to $280,000.
DuPage: sales were up 34 percent to 485 units; the median price climbed 9 percent to $127,500.
Kane: sales climbed 48 percent to 160 units; the median price rose 16 percent to $125,058.
Kendall: sales were down 17 percent to 48 units; the median price was up 8 percent to $105,250.
Lake: sales rose 57 percent to 274 units, and the median price was up 22 percent to $140,000.
McHenry: sales were 70 percent higher at 109 units, while the median price rose 18 percent to $115,000.
Will: sales increased 50 percent with 224 closings completed; the median price was up 18 percent to $130,000.
Detached Homes
Sales of detached homes turned in another strong month in July across the metro area. Average market time decreased to 99 days from 102 days in June and 136 days in July 2012. Sales transactions totaled 7,469, which was 35 percent more than in July of last year, and on the same basis, the median sales price rose 15 percent to $225,000.
The county-by-county results for detached home sales comparing July 2013 with July 2012 are as follows.
Cook: sales were 29 percent higher at 3,471 units, and the median sales price rose 20 percent to $210,000. Of the total sales in Cook County, 1,069 were in Chicago, a 22 percent increase, and the median price in the city was up 25 percent to $187,000.
DuPage: sales were up 52 percent to 1,042 units; the median price escalated 11 percent to $300,000.
Kane: sales increased 41 percent to 661 units; the median price rose 21 percent to $199,900.
Kendall: sales activity was 29 percent higher at 168 units; the median price climbed 11 percent to $210,000.
Lake: sales transactions totaled 928 units, a 36 percent gain, while the median price rose 11 percent to $255,000.
McHenry: sales activity increased 50 percent to 416 units; the median price gained 6 percent to $182,750.
Will: sales were 33 percent higher at 782 units, and the median price rose 14 percent to $214,500.
RE/MAX has been the leader in the northern Illinois real estate market since 1989. The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network, with headquarters in Elgin, Ill., consists of 2,000 sales associates and 100 individually owned and operated RE/MAX offices that provide a full range of residential and commercial brokerage services. Its http://www.illinoisproperty.com and http://www.remax.com websites are leaders in consumer visits among real estate franchise brands. The http://www.global.remax.com website allows consumers to search properties around the globe; http://www.theremaxcollection.com is a specialized portal of luxury properties across the U.S., and http://www.remaxcommercial.com displays commercial properties available nationwide and abroad. The northern Illinois network is part of RE/MAX LLC, a global real estate organization with 91,000 sales associates in 90+ nations. The RE/MAX organization has been recognized for numerous industry honors for excellence, and its Associates continue to lead the industry in professional designations, experience and production. Nobody in the world sells more real estate than RE/MAX. RE/MAX is the official real estate partner of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the national sponsor of Susan G. Komen for the Cure®.
Laura Ortoleva, RE/MAX Northern Illinois, http://www.illinoisproperty.com, +1 (847) 428-4200 224, [email protected]
Share this article