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January year-over-year home sales managed to edge higher in Illinois despite another month of sparse housing inventory, according to data from Illinois REALTORS®.
In January 2024, statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) of 6,896 homes sold was 0.8 percent higher than 6,839 sold in January 2023. In January there were only 15,186 homes for sale statewide, a 22.1 percent decrease from 19,501 homes on the market in January 2023. Also, the monthly median price of $258,000 in January 2024 was 11.0 percent higher than it was the year before at $232,500. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
“In January, we saw some positives for consumers with statewide sales slightly positive even as median home prices continued to rise and the number of houses available for sale fell,” says Matt Silver, Illinois REALTORS® 2024 President and partner and senior broker for Corcoran Urban Real Estate in Chicago. “It is a good starting point for the year with interest rates about to fall, so both buyers and sellers should contact a REALTOR® now and get prepared to capitalize on the positive momentum. We are working diligently with elected officials to remove or reduce impediments for building new homes and remodeling older ones to provide more housing options for everyone in Illinois.”
In the nine-county Chicago Metro Area, January 2024 home sales (single-family and condominiums) totaled 4,538 homes sold, up 1.3 percent from January 2023 sales of 4,478 homes. In January 2024, there were only 9,663 homes for sale in the Chicago Metro Area, a 28.3 percent decrease from 13,471 homes on the market in January 2023. The median price of a home in the Chicago Metro Area in January 2024 was $315,000, up 10.1 percent from $286,000 in January 2023.
“The housing market is continuing its long-running trend of low sales and relatively high prices,” said Dr. Daniel McMillen, professor of real estate and associate dean for faculty affairs at the University of Illinois-Chicago College of Business Administration. “However, consumer confidence has turned up markedly, and sales traditionally increase significantly in spring. We expect the recent trends toward lower inflation rates, interest rates, and unemployment rates to lead to a rebound in the housing market in the coming months.”
The city of Chicago saw a 3.4 percent year-over-year home sales decrease in January 2024 with 1,059 sales, down from 1,096 in January 2023. In January 2024, there were only 3,829 homes for sale in the city of Chicago, a 28.1 percent decrease from 5,329 homes on the market in January 2023. The median price of a home in the city of Chicago in January 2024 was $315,000, up 6.3 percent in January 2023 when it was $296,408.
“In January, an increase in median sales price and a decrease in inventory are indicative of a steady drive in homebuyers,” said Drussy Hernandez, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and vice president of brokerage services for Coldwell Banker Realty in Chicago. “The notable surge in single family sales price in a pinched inventory market demonstrates buyers’ commitment to making homeownership a reality.”
Sales and price information are generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 22 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of Feb. 7, 2024, for the period Jan. 1 through Jan. 31, 2024. 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.
Based on the Freddie Mac data, the monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.64 percent in January 2024, down from the previous month of 6.82 percent. The January 2023 average was 6.27 percent.
Find Illinois housing stats, data and the February 2024 forecast from the Stuart Handler Department of Real Estate at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Business Administration at http://www.illinoisrealtors.org/marketstats/.
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.
