Illinois home sales were down slightly compared to last May while median prices posted another year-over-year increase, data from Illinois REALTORS® show.
Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in May totaled 17,034 homes sold, down 1.3 percent from 17,256 in May 2018.
The statewide median price in May was $219,000, up 1.9 percent from May 2018, when the median price was $215,000. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
“The housing market is showing clear signs of strengthening as we enter the summer months,” said Ed Neaves, president-elect of Illinois REALTORS® and managing broker of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Snyder Real Estate in Bloomington. “The data suggest healthy buyer demand remains a fixture this year, while at the same time home sellers are still poised to make a modest profit.”
The time it took to sell a home in May averaged 49 days, the same as a year ago. Available inventory totaled 56,414 homes for sale, a 3.3 percent decline from 58,317 homes in May 2018.
According to the data, home sales in the Peoria MSA (Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell and Woodford counties) totaled 565 units, a 17.2 percent increase while the median price was up 3.1 percent to $127,300; home sales in the Rockford MSA (Boone and Winnebago counties) totaled 498, a 1.4 percent increase while the median price was up 3.3 percent to $126,000.
The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 4.07 percent in
May, a decrease from 4.14 percent the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. In May 2018, it averaged 4.60 percent.
In the nine-county Chicago Metro Area, home sales (single-family and condominiums) in May totaled 12,129, down 3.6 percent from May 2018 sales of 12,583 homes. The median price in May was $259,000 in the Chicago Metro Area, an increase of 2.0 percent from $254,000 in May 2018.
“While consumer sentiment has become more broadly positive nationally, Illinois consumers appear to be responding a little more conservatively,” said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory at the University of Illinois. “Housing sales continue to grow more slowly compared to prior years’ experience at this time of the year.”
According to the data, forty-eight (48) Illinois counties reported sales gains for May over previous-year numbers, including Kendall County, up 12.0 percent with 290 units sold; and Sangamon County, up 11.6 percent with 346 units sold. Sixty-one (61) counties showed year-over-year median price increases including St. Clair County, up 10.0 percent to $160,000; and Cook County, up 3.4 percent to $268,750.
The city of Chicago saw year-over-year home sales decrease 5.0 percent with 2,895 sales in May, compared to 3,047 a year ago. The median price of a home in the city of Chicago in May was $315,000 up 3.3 percent compared to May 2018 when it was $305,000.
“While closed sales have fallen, there’s reason for both buyers and sellers to be encouraged,” said Tommy Choi, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and broker at Keller Williams Chicago – Lincoln Park. “Prices are still affordable and interest rates are historically low, as the market remains competitive, but stable. Buyers are gaining some breathing room in the transaction and sellers are having to be more measured in their approach.”
Sales and price information are generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 27 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of June 7, 2019 for the period May 1 through May 31, 2019. The Chicago Metro Area, 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 50,000 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 more at staging.illinoisrealtors.org/marketstats.
