Home Sales Bouncing Back In Chicago

(Crain’s) — Chicago-area home sales jumped last month compared with last year, but median prices fell again.



CHICAGO-AREA SALES



Local sales of single-family homes and condo rose in February for the eighth month.



Month                 2010                  2009                     Change

January                3,922                 3,035                     29.2%

February             4,134                 3,133                     32%

March                6,310                  4,339                     45.4%

Month                2009                   2008                     Change

January              3,035                  3,927                       -22.7%

February            3,133                  4,326                        -27.6%

March               4,339                  5,759                        -24.7%

April                  4,747                 6,094                         -22.1%

May                  5,634                 6,927                          -18.7%

June                  7,140                 7,806                           -8.5%

July                   7,427                 7,408                            0.3%

August              7,009                 6,917                            1.3%

September        6,862                 6,477                             5.9%

October            7,286                 5,467                             33.3%

November        6,826                 3,978                             71.6%

December        5,752                 4,320                            33.1%
 
Full year         69,290               69,406                             -0.2%

Source: Illinois Assn. of Realtors

In the nine-county Chicago region, sales of single-family homes and condos rose 45.4% to 6,310, compared with 4,339 in March 2009, according to a release Thursday from the Illinois Assn. of Realtors.

In the city of Chicago, sales rose nearly 50% last month, to 1,814 compared with 1,212 in March 2009, the Realtors said.

Chicago-area sales are up 36.7% so far this year compared with the first quarter of last year, according to the release. City sales rose 41.6% in the first quarter.

A tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time homebuyers and $6,500 for other buyers is available for sales with contracts signed by April 30 and that close by June 30.

"Statewide and in the Chicagoland region we've seen double-digit sales increases for the past six months spurred largely by the tax credit and the strong buyer-market conditions, and the forecast for the next three months indicates this trend should continue," Mike Onorato, president of the Realtors association and broker-owner of Onorato Real Estate in Coal City, said in the release. "Strong sales are working off housing inventories and helping to stabilize the market, although the number of foreclosures remains a concern as these distressed properties continue to affect prices. The declines in median home prices have moderated significantly from last year signaling a regain of consumer confidence about home purchases."

The median price in the Chicago area — at which half the homes sell for more and half for less — fell to $184,000 in March compared with $192,900 in March 2009. But the March median was up from $165,000 in February and $175,000 in January.

In Chicago, the March median price of $209,000 was down from $219,000 in March 2009 but up from $176,400 in February and $195,000 in January.

Statewide, sales rose 32.8% last month and are up 23.5% for the first three months of the year.

The median statewide price has dipped just 0.3% in the first three months compared with the first quarter of 2009, according to the Realtors group. The Illinois Assn. of Realtors’ sales figures include new and existing homes. The nine-county Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.