Steady Acceleration Continued in Metro Chicago Residential Market Through First Half of 2017, RE/MAX Reports; Sales Rose 4 Percent

ELGIN, Ill., July 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The first half of 2017 saw the metropolitan Chicago housing market continue its steady acceleration, according to an analysis by RE/MAX Northern Illinois. Compared to the first half of 2016, home sales activity in the seven-county metro area increased 4 percent to 58,275 units, while the median sales price gained 6.6 percent to $239,900.

Those increases were achieved despite a limited supply of homes for sale. The number of listings on the market June 30 was down 10 percent from a year earlier, and the 33,704 homes on the market equaled just a 2.4-month supply based on the pace of June sales.

"We were pleasantly surprised by the way the market has performed during the first half of this year despite the relative scarcity of listings," explained Jack Kreider, executive vice president and regional director of RE/MAX Northern Illinois. "Average market time for homes sold during that period was 87 days, the lowest number for any first half since 2005, but in June it was just 69 days, the shortest market time for any month since we began tracking that data 13 years ago."

With homes selling quickly and prices rising, it has been a good year for sellers, noted Kreider.

"I don't expect that to change soon," he said. "It sounds as if the Fed will raise interest rates slowly, which should help maintain the strong demand for homes that we've seen over the last several years."

The home sales data used for the RE/MAX analysis is collected by MRED, the regional multiple listing service. It covers detached and attached homes in the Illinois counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will. Detached homes are typically stand-alone single-family dwellings. Attached homes include condominium and cooperative apartments along with townhouses. 

Home sales activity and the median sales price for the January-June period rose in all metro counties, as well as in Chicago. Sales activity gains ranged from 6.8 percent in McHenry to 2 percent in DuPage, while increases in the median sales price varied from 11.4 percent in Lake to 5.6 percent in Kane.

Detached Homes

The first half of 2017 saw a 3 percent increase in sales of detached homes to 36,566 units. The median sales price gained 6.7 percent to $256,000, and average market time fell by 7 days to 98 days.

Sales transactions and the median price rose in all seven counties and in Chicago. Only two counties had home sales rise 4 percent or more, with sales up 5.7 percent in Kendall and 5.5 percent in McHenry. The median price increased by double digits in Lake, gaining 11.1 percent, and in Chicago, where it rose 10 percent.

Attached Homes

Sales of attached homes posted a solid 5.9 percent increase to 21,709 units, and the median sales price gained 5.8 percent to $201,000. Average market time in this category fell to just 67 days for the six-month period.

Sales activity was up in all metro counties and Chicago, with three counties recording double-digit increases. They were McHenry at 12.8 percent, Will at 12.7 percent and Kane at 11.8 percent.

The median sales price also was up across the board, led by a 12.3 percent increase in McHenry and gains of 9.6 percent in Kendall and 9.4 percent in DuPage.  Cook County, where more than two-thirds of attached sales take place, recorded gains of 5.3 percent in transactions and 3.9 percent in the median price.

June Sales

Metro Chicago home sales in June totaled 13,958 units, 3 percent more than during June 2016. The median sales price for the month was $239,900, a gain of 6.6 percent. Sales of detached homes rose 2.1 percent, while sales of attached homes were up 4.4 percent.

RE/MAX agents consistently rank among the most productive in the industry. In 2016, RE/MAX Northern Illinois agents averaged 18 transaction sides. RE/MAX has been the leader in the northern Illinois real estate market since 1989 and is continually growing. The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network, with headquarters in Elgin, Ill., consists of more than 2,250 sales associates and 105 independently owned and operated RE/MAX offices that provide a full range of residential and commercial brokerage services. Its mobile real estate app, available for download at www.illinoisproperty.com, provides comprehensive information about residential and commercial property for sale in the region. The northern Illinois network is part of RE/MAX, a global real estate organization with 110,000+ sales associates in 100+ nations. 

Contact:
Chris Calomino
RE/MAX Northern Illinois
847-428-4200

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SOURCE RE/MAX Northern Illinois