Illinois home sales, while lower than a year ago, showed improved momentum in June as more of the economy reopened and consumers headed back into the housing market even amid tighter available inventory, data from Illinois REALTORS® shows.
Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in June totaled 14,921 homes sold, down 11.8 percent from 16,925 in June 2019.
The statewide median price in June was $222,000, down 1.3 percent from June 2019, when the median price was $225,000. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
“While June home sales showed improvement compared to May, home sales results were mixed and still below last year’s levels,” said Ed Neaves, president of Illinois REALTORS® and designated managing broker of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Snyder Real Estate in Bloomington. “We saw that as soon as the coronavirus lockdown began loosening, homebuyers snatched up the homes that were for sale and prices held steady. But the inventory as a whole was still at historically low levels.”
The time it took to sell a home in June averaged 55 days, an increase of 22.2 percent from the year before. Available inventory totaled 42,772 homes for sale, a 30.6 percent decline from 61,587 homes in June 2019.
According to the data, home sales in the Bloomington MSA (McLean and Dewitt counties) totaled 297 units, a 10.0 percent increase while the median price was up 1.1 percent to $166,000; home sales in the Moline-Rock Island MSA (Henry, Mercer and Rock Island counties) totaled 252 units, a 10.5 percent increase while the median price increased 7.9 percent to $123,950.
The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 3.16 percent in
June, a decrease from 3.23 percent the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. In June 2019, it averaged 3.80 percent.
In the nine-county Chicago Metro Area, home sales (single-family and condominiums) in June totaled 9,911, down 19.0 percent from June 2019 sales of 12,235 homes. The median price in June was $267,000 in the Chicago Metro Area, an increase of 1.6 percent from $262,900 in June 2019.
“The Illinois and Chicago housing markets both recorded positive month-to-month increases in sales, although declines on a yearly basis,” said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, emeritus director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory at the University of Illinois. “The Illinois market recorded the second consecutive month of price decreases while the Chicago market maintained very modest price growth. The declines are expected to continue in Illinois, but the changes will be very close to zero in Chicago over the next three months.”
The city of Chicago saw year-over-year home sales decrease 29.1 percent with 2,020 sales in June, compared to 2,850 a year ago. The median price of a home in the city of Chicago in June was $329,500, up 3.3 percent from June 2019.
“As we began the reopening process of our city in June, we saw the market respond accordingly,” said Maurice Hampton, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and owner of Centered International Realty. “Although there was a 29.1 percent decline in sales, it was a big improvement from May, and prices continue to hold steady. The 20.2 percent decline in inventory definitely plays into these sales declines, as more options lead to more opportunities for homebuyers.”
Sales and price information are generated by Multiple Listing Service data on closed sales reported by 26 participating Illinois REALTORS® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of July 7, 2020 for the period June 30, 2020. 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 and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.IllinoisRealtors.org/MarketStats.
