By Peter Ricci

Home sales in the city of Chicago increased by stratospheric amounts in October, posting a 53.1 percent increase year-over-year with a median sale price jump of 8.0 percent, according to the latest numbers from the Illinois Association of Realtors.

Similarly, for the nine-county Chicago area, home sales were up by 44.1 percent from October 2001, and median price for the month rose 2.1 percent, in what is the area’s best October in six years.

Chicago Home Sales Part of Strong Illinois Effort

In addition to the strong Chicago home sales numbers, the condo market was also notable, posting a 55.8 percent yearly increase in October.

Other details in IAR’s report included:

• Statewide, home sales increased 37.3 percent year-over-year, and median prices rose by 3.0 percent.
• Nearly 12,000 homes were sold in the state in October; that’s up from 8,577 in October 2011, and the most sales for October since 2006.
• So far in 2012, median price has risen 12.9 percent from February 2012, when prices bottomed in the state.
• Altogether, 68 of the 101 counties in Illinois reported year-over-year increases in home sales in October, and 53 reported year-over-year median price increases, with DuPage, Kendall and Cook reporting respective increases of 11.4, 5.8 and 3.4 percent.

Michael Parent, the managing broker of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in St. Charles and president-elect of the Mainstreet Organization of Realtors, said he has seen a definite increase in activity in his markets.

“We are seeing an increase in activity in both DuPage and Kane County,” Parent said.

October home sales in DuPage and Kane, Parent continued, are up 21.2 and 21.9 percent, respectively, from a year ago, and more specifically, they have risen in a number of neighborhoods, including Wheaton (10 percent), Naperville (30.5 percent), Oak Brook (60.8 percent) and Wayne (93 percent).

A big part of that increase, Parent said, is homebuyer confidence has been rising throughout 2012. Now that housing inventory levels are more balanced, and active listings are getting more attention, he said his office is seeing multiple offer situations, and bidding wars have even resulted.

“It’s becoming more and more difficult for homebuyers to sit on the sidelines,” he said.

This nifty infographic from IAR expands on its report: