CHICAGO—After a pretty solid year for the luxury home market in the Chicago region, buyers were less active during the first three months of 2016. According to a new report from RE/MAX , 347 properties sold for at least $1 million during the quarter, compared to 381 sales in the same period last year, a 9% decline. The purchased homes spent an average of 184 days on the market before going under contract, compared to 143 days a year earlier. And the median sales price was $1,366,875, an increase of 1% over the same period last year. "The first quarter tends to be a relatively slow period for luxury home sales, so it's probably too early to say if this trend will continue into the spring and summer," says Jack Kreider , executive vice president and regional director of Elgin, IL-based RE/MAX Northern Illinois . "We are, however, also seeing a steady increase in the inventory of luxury listings, which is another indicator that luxury sales are slowing." The RE/MAX report is a quarterly analysis of $1 million-plus home sales in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties from data compiled by Midwest Real Estate Data . Chicago accounted for 52% of all luxury sales in the metro area during the first quarter, with 182 luxury properties changing hands. Last year, 209 luxury sales were completed in the first quarter. L incoln Park, Logan Square and Near North did record increases, a sign that luxury sales may increase during 2016 in some parts of the city. In the Chicago suburbs, luxury sales for the first quarter totaled 165 units, 4% fewer than the same period in 2015. However, the median sales price increased 4% to $1,350,000. Average market time rose 29 days to 206 days. Hinsdale enjoyed a particularly strong first quarter, with 29 luxury sales, compared to 19 last year. Sales were also up in Wilmette, climbing to 17 units from 13. Meanwhile, Winnetka, often the leader of the suburban luxury market, saw sales fall to 19 units from 24 a year ago.

Instant Insights /

Sales of Luxury Homes Slow Down in 2016

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