RE/MAX NORTHERN ILLINOIS REPORTS HOME PRICES

SHOWED SOLID GAIN IN JULY

The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network reported that average home prices across its operating region recorded a solid increase in July.  The average home sales price was up 4.8 percent compared to July 2005.

The average price of a home sold by RE/MAX Northern Illinois in July was $286,447, up from $273,365 a year earlier.  However, the July average price was $344 less than the average price in June of this year.

“Historically, the average June price is higher than the average July price, and the difference this year was actually smaller than usual,” said Jim Merrion, regional director of RE/MAX Northern Illinois.  Last year, the average June price was $276,327, or about $3,000 more than the July average price.  In 2004, the June-July decline was more than $4,000.

            “We continue to see a shift from the seller’s market of recent years to a more balanced market.  While prices are holding up pretty well, buyers have a much wider array of homes from which to choose,” said Merrion. 

He noted that in July, RE/MAX agents in Northern Illinois took 4,707 new listings, up from 4,199 in July of last year.

 “The inventory of homes for sale is probably 20 percent higher today than it was a year ago,” said Merrion.  “We monitor the market on a daily basis through our www.illinoisproperty.com website, which offers access to Chicago, Rockford and Quad Cities homes and real estate.”

            He also noted that market times for those homes that sell are only a bit longer than in 2005, based on data from the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois. 

            The average market times for single-family homes for which sales closed in July was 87 days, compared to 86 days last year.  For condominiums and other attached housing, the average was 89 days this July, a slight improvement over the 91-day average recorded a year earlier. 

            The picture was somewhat different for listed properties not under contract, which currently average about 127 days of market time.

            “We think this reflects a market in which homes that are in excellent condition and appropriately priced still sell quite quickly,” said Merrion.  “This is a market that will be tough on those sellers who choose to go it alone because expert advice can make all the difference in getting a home sold.  That is especially true for single-family homes in the higher price brackets, where the sales pace has clearly slowed substantially.”

            The Illinois Association of Realtors reported that, for July, sales of all homes in the state were 11.7 percent lower than in July 2005.  In the Chicago area, sales of single-family homes were down 18.6 percent and condo sales fell 8.4 percent when compared to July 2005. 

            “Our offices have seen a comparable decline in sales activity though some local markets are impacted more than others,” said Merrion. “For example, we are seeing more of a slowdown in sales in the Chicago suburbs than in the city or in communities outside the metropolitan area.”

            RE/MAX offices lead in real estate sales across Northern Illinois and have been number one in residential sales in the Chicago metropolitan area since 1989.  In 2005, RE/MAX Northern Illinois had closed sales volume of $17.46 billion. 

            The RE/MAX network in northern Illinois consists of 4,200 associates and 166 individually owned and operated offices providing residential, relocation and commercial real estate services throughout the northern one-third of Illinois.  The Northern Illinois region is part of the RE/MAX International network, a global real estate system operating in 66 countries.  It consists of more than 6,500 independently owned offices that engage 120,000 member sales associates.

#####