Illinois Housing Market Improves in May

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RISMEDIA, June 30, 2008-Illinois REALTORS® statewide reported an upswing in home sales in May from April 2008, according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS® latest report. Total home sales (which include single-family and condominiums) were up 17.3% in May 2008 to 11,173 sales compared to April 2008 sales of 9,523; year-over-year sales were down 22.9% from May 2007 totals of 14,493. The Illinois median price in May reached $190,000, down 7.3% from $204,900 in May 2007. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more, half sold for less.

“The Illinois housing market showed some positive signs of stabilizing in May with a sizeable jump in sales from the previous month and the fourth consecutive month-to-month increase,” said REALTOR(R) Kay Wirth, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS(R). “Pricing and knowledge of the local market are key factors in moving homes in today’s environment, and it’s important to get a thorough market analysis from a real estate professional who knows the local market inside and out.”

The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central region was 6.04% in May 2008, up 0.10 points from the 5.94 average rate the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Last year in May it averaged 6.29%.

“Some key markets saw a pick-up in sales in May over last year including Iroquois, Jo Daviess, Knox and Madison counties,” said Wirth, a broker with Re/Max Unlimited Northwest in Crystal Lake.

In the Chicagoland Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA) total home sales (which include single-family and condominiums) were up 13.7% in May 2008 to 6,927 sales compared to April 2008 sales of 6,095; year-over-year sales were down 29.0% from 9,751 home sales in May 2007. The median home sale price for the Chicagoland PMSA was $251,000 in May 2008, off 0.5% from $252,200 in May 2007. The Chicagoland PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties.

“Illinois defied the national trend for the third time in the last six months by adding 4,000 jobs in May, registering a 0.35 percent growth in jobs in the last 12 months,” said Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) of the University of Illinois. “Forecasts for the next three months (June, July and August) suggest continuing declines in home sales compared to the same months last year but month-to-month forecasts suggest positive growth in June, declines in July, and almost no change in August.”

In the latest forecast for the National Association of Realtors chief economist Lawrence Yun said the underlying fundamentals point to a pent-up demand. “Home sales are at about the same level as they were 10 years ago yet the population has grown by 25 million people and we have over 10 million more jobs,” said Yun. “The housing market has been underperforming by historical standards, partly because buyers were hampered by mortgage availability issues, but that’s improved and an upturn is likely.”

Sales and price information is generated from a survey of Multiple Listing Service sales reported by 35 participating Illinois Realtor local boards and associations.

For more information, visit http://www.illinoisrealtor.org.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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