CHICAGO- The state's residential housing market continues to improve and has now posted monthly year-over-year gains since July 2011, according to new data released by the Illinois Association of REALTORS®. The trade group announced yesterday that a total of 10,992 homes were sold in March, an increase of 13.6 percent over the previous March. A total of 8,213 homes were sold in February. Furthermore, the median price for homes was $135,000, up 3.6 percent from the previous March.

“We are entering what is traditionally the busiest period of the year in the real estate market," says Michael D. Oldenettel, president of the association and managing broker and owner with RE/MAX Results Plus in Jacksonville. "The decreasing time it takes to sell a home, coupled with shrinking inventories shows there is keen interest on the part of homebuyers who are rushing to lock in favorable interest rates and take advantage of low, but increasing prices."

Buyers and sellers in most regions were more active. In the nine counties that comprise the Chicago metropolitan area, for example, a total of 7,914 homes were sold, an increase of 18.1 percent over the previous March. And city of Chicago homebuyers closed on 1,894 homes, an increase of 13.8 percent.