May 24, 2005

For Immediate Release

Contact: Mary Schaefer, Ann Londrigan, 217/529-2600   

Illinois April Single-Family Home Sales Drop 2.9 Percent from Last Year; Illinois Median Price at $192,100

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois REALTORS recorded fewer single-family home sales in April compared to last year at this time, but overall the market remains attractive and active. According to the Illinois Association of REALTORS latest report, a total of 10,778 single-family home sales were reported by REALTORS in April 2005, down 2.9 percent from 11,100 sales in April 2004. The median price of a single-family home in April 2005 was $192,100, up 9.8 percent from $175,000 in 2004. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more, half sold for less.

Year-to-date, home sales are off 1.2 percent, from 33,790 homes sold in the first four months of 2004 to 33,393 sales for the same period in 2005.

“Industry forecasters expect the 2005 housing market to be the second best year on record from last year’s all-time record for single-family home sale activity,” said John Veneris, CRB, CRS, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS. “Residential sales are still at very healthy, active levels and second homebuying is on the rise, despite the fact inventories remain lean nationwide. The Illinois job market is picking up and REALTORS report that demand remains strong.”

The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central region was 5.99 percent, down .04 points from the 6.03 average rate during the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Last year in April it averaged 5.95 percent. The average home price for April 2005 was $242,400, an 11.3 percent increase from $217,800 in April 2004.

A total of 5,051 condominium sales were reported in April 2005, up 6.5 percent from 4,744 sales in the same month last year. The statewide condominium median price for April was $200,000, up 6.7 percent from $187,500 one year ago.

In the Chicagoland Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), single-family home sales totaled 6,682, down 1.5 percent from 6,784 home sales in April 2004. The median single-family home price for the Chicagoland PMSA was $254,900, up 7.6 percent from $237,000 in April 2004.

Condominium sales in the Chicagoland PMSA rose 6.2 percent in April to 4,891 units sold, while the condominium median sales price increased 7.4 percent to $204,000. In April 2004 condo sales for the Chicagoland PMSA totaled 4,607; the median price was $190,000.

“Condos are outdoing even last year’s gains in unit sales and price appreciation,” said Veneris, broker-owner of Realty Executives Pro/Team of Downers Grove and Realty Executives REALTORS^® in Naperville. “The condo has become the housing stock of choice for investors and those in the vacation and second home market.”

Sales and price information is generated from a survey of Multiple Listing Service sales reported by 36 participating Illinois REALTOR local boards and associations. The Chicagoland PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.

The Illinois Association of REALTORS is a voluntary trade association whose 54,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, the Illinois Association of REALTORS works to protect the rights of private property owners in the state by recommending and promoting legislation that safeguards and advances the interest of real property ownership.

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Editor’s Note:  Starting in March 2005, IAR is using a new system of market statistics reporting based on county totals for single-family home sales (existing and new) and condominiums as well as median and average prices. Monthly, IAR will report figures for the state as a whole and for the Chicagoland PMSA (Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties). Quarterly, IAR will provide a breakdown of sales totals and median prices by county.