CHICAGO—Statewide home sales decreased in February, but lower housing inventory and strong buyer demand drove median home prices higher, according Illinois REALTORS. Statewide home sales totaled 8,151 homes sold, down 5.1% from 8,585 in February 2017. The statewide median price in February was $185,000, up 8.8% from one year ago, when the median price was $170,000.
“A chronic shortage in the number of available homes on the market is setting this spring market up to be one where buyers are going to have to move quickly and decisively,” says Matt Difanis, president of Illinois REALTORS and broker-owner of RE/MAX Realty Associates in downstate Champaign. “We saw an increase in the number of properties which came onto the market in February, but we're still a long way from having enough inventory to satisfy consumer demand.”
And buyers have been snapping up homes quicker than ever. The time it took to sell a home in February averaged just 71 days, down from 74 days a year ago. Just three years ago, sold homes had been on the market for 91 days. Available housing inventory totaled 47,108 homes for sale, a 12% decline from February 2017 when there were 53,522 homes on the market.
In the nine-county Chicago metro area, February home sales totaled 5,722 homes sold, down 4.2% from February 2017 sales of 5,971 homes. The metro area's median price in February was $227,500, an increase of 8.3% from $210,000 one year ago.
“With the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index decreasing, consumers seem to be apprehensive about future increases in interest rates and some uncertainties about the impact of the tax reform legislation,” says Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory at the University of Illinois. “In combination with shrinking inventory and concerns about affordability at the lower end of the price scale, year-over-year sales numbers are forecast to be lower than in 2017.”
Suburban McHenry County saw a big jump in prices last month. The median price was $205,000, a 13.9% year-over-year increase. Buyers also drove up prices in Cook County. The median price in February was $232,250, an increase of 10.6%.
The city of Chicago saw year-over-year home sales decline in February with 1,490 sales, compared to 1,529 one year ago. The median price of a home in the city of Chicago was $272,000, up 10.6% compared to last February when it was $246,000.
“Buyers must be proactive in this market,” says Rebecca Thomson, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS and vice president of agent development at @properties. “With inventory tightening, buyers may need to account for a longer search. In that same vein, prospective sellers may delay listing their homes until after they've identified where they plan to go. Fewer homes on the market make this a catch-22. When the right opportunity arises, buyers will need to act quickly.”
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Brian J. Rogal
Brian J. Rogal is a Chicago-based freelance writer with years of experience as an investigative reporter and editor, most notably at The Chicago Reporter, where he concentrated on housing issues. He also has written extensively on alternative energy and the payments card industry for national trade publications.
