Chicago, IL Metro Area Housing Market Analysis - August 2024
The housing market in the Chicago, IL metro area presents a complex landscape as of August 2024, characterized by a mix of declining prices and reduced sales activity, juxtaposed with rising Price Per Square Foot metrics.
Price Trends
The Median Sales Price for homes in the Chicago metro area stands at $352,000, reflecting a year-over-year (YoY) decrease of 3.5%. Similarly, the Median List Price has dropped to $339,900, marking a 2.9% decline YoY. Despite these reductions, the median Price Per Square Foot has increased by 4.8% to $217.75, and the Median List Price per square foot has risen by 6.5% to $215.83. These figures suggest that while overall home prices are falling, the value attributed to each square foot of property is appreciating.
Sales Activity
Sales activity has seen a notable downturn. The number of Homes Sold in August 2024 is 7,327, which is a 5.7% decrease YoY. Pending Sales have also dropped significantly by 10.0%, totaling 7,413. New Listings have decreased by 7.2% to 7,872, and the overall inventory has shrunk by 8.3% to 17,408 homes. These declines indicate a cooling market with fewer transactions and a tighter supply of available homes.
Market Dynamics
The Months of Supply, a critical indicator of market balance, remains unchanged YoY at 2.4 months. This stability suggests that the market is still relatively balanced between buyers and sellers. The Median Days on Market also remain steady at 49 days, indicating no significant change in the speed at which homes are selling.
Sale to List Ratios and Price Adjustments
The average sale to list ratio is slightly down by 0.3% YoY, now at 99.9%, indicating that homes are selling very close to their listing prices. However, the percentage of Homes Sold above list price has decreased by 4.0% to 42.0%. Additionally, Price Drops have increased by 2.5% YoY, now at 20.3%, suggesting that sellers are more frequently adjusting their expectations to meet market conditions.
Off-Market Trends
The percentage of homes going off-market within two weeks has decreased by 2.7% YoY to 45.8%, indicating a slight slowdown in the urgency of transactions. This could be reflective of the broader trend of reduced sales activity and increased price adjustments.
In summary, the Chicago, IL metro area housing market in August 2024 is experiencing a decline in overall home prices and sales activity, while the value per square foot continues to rise. The market remains balanced in terms of supply and demand, but sellers are increasingly adjusting prices to align with market realities.
