Home sales in the Chicagoland area rose by 28.5 percent in August, as distressed property sales moved quicker through the housing market.

By Stephanie Sims

Chicagoland area home sales in August were up 28.5 percent from last year to 9,240 sales, and median price is up more than 20 percent from January 2012, according to the latest stats from the Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR).

In addition, home sales for the city of Chicago were strong, increasing year-over-year by 23.6 percent to 2,209 sales. The condo market was particularly notable, posting a 35.9 percent yearly increase. Median home sale price was up 3.9 percent from August 2011, and the 14,280 homes sold so far in 2012 is a 19 percent increase over the same time period in 2011.

Illinois Home Sales Similarly Strong

Home sales for the state of Illinois, according to IAR’s stats, were similarly promising:

• Home sales rose 23.7 percent year-over-year for Illinois in August, which marks 14 consecutive months of increasing sales; in addition, sales were up 7 percent from July.
• Median price was down 0.7 percent from August 2011, but the $147,000 median was still 20 percent higher than January 2012.
• More than half of Illinois’ counties reported year-over-year increases in home sales, and 41 reported increases in yearly median price, including a 3.3 percent increase in Kendall County and a 1.6 percent increase in Will Count.

 Zeke Morris – Chicago Housing Turn-Around a “Reality”

Zeke Morris, the president of the Chicago Association of Realtors and managing broker of Keller Williams Realty, CCG in Hyde Park, said the latest stats for Chicago and the surrounding markets further support the markets’ recovery.

“Continued signs of a turn-around are a reality in Chicago, as homes are selling and prices are stabilizing,” Morris said.

Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, the director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory of the University of Illinois, added another positive to the report – the latest data, he said, suggests that the Chicago and Illinois housing markets will be able to clear out their distressed housing inventory quicker than originally anticipated.

“The August data show that it will take less than three years to clear the active inventory, a further indication that the backlogs are declining since in April it would have taken 3.28 years to clear the market,” he said.