February 14, 2012 (Shirley Allen)
Sales of existing homes and condominiums in Illinois followed seasonal trends and declined from the third quarter of 2011 to the fourth quarter but were still higher than the same quarter a year ago according to the latest data from the Illinois Association of REALTORS® (IAR).
An estimated total of 25,394 existing homes and condos were sold in the Land of Lincoln in the fourth quarter. That was 14.3 percent lower than the 29,644 homes sold in the third quarter but 14.8 percent higher than the 22,114 homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2010.
The median sales price for an existing home in Illinois declined 12.0 percent to $128,000 in the fourth quarter from $145,500 in the third quarter and was 10.4 percent lower than the median price of $143,500 in the fourth quarter of 2010.
Total home sales in 2011 were down just slightly from 2010, falling from 103,899 homes sold in 2010 to 103,785 in 2011 with the statewide median price dropping from $151,500 in 2010 to $137,500 in 2011.
Loretta Alonzo, President of the Illinois Association of REALTORS®, stated, “For homebuyers who are feeling confident enough to re-enter the housing market, this data shows there is great opportunity for them. Growing optimism about the economy and low interest rates generated a lot of interest in real estate in the final part of the year.”
Sixty-one of the 98 counties that reported data posted higher home sales than a year ago, while 45 of the counties posted an increase in their annual median sales price.
Year-over-year home prices were up 32.6 percent in Coles, 39.3 percent in Menard, 8.6 percent in Kankakee, 12.5 percent in Whiteside, 1.4 percent in Madison and 2.1 percent in Monroe Counties.
In the nine-county Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), sales of existing homes and condos totaled 17,321 in the fourth quarter, down 12.7 percent from 19,847 homes sold in the third quarter but up 20.4 percent from the 14,392 homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2010.
The median sales price for a home in the Chicago MSA was $148,300, down 15.0 percent from a median price of $174,500 in the third quarter and down 14.0 percent compared to the fourth quarter of last year when the median sales price was $172,500.
Tags: existing homes, condos, sales, median home prices, Illinois
