Chicago-area home sales fall 22% in April
(Crain's) — Chicago-area home sales fell more than 22% in April compared with last year but increased over the previous month for the third straight time, according to the Illinois Assn. of Realtors.
| YEAR-OVER-YEAR DECLINES | |||
Below is a monthly year-over-year comparison of home sales (single-family and condo) in the nine-county Chicago area.
| |||
| Month | 2009 | 2008 | Change |
| January | 2,965 | class="smaller" align="center"> 3,927 | -24.5% |
| February | 3,082 | 4,326 | -28.8% |
| March | 4,260 | class="smaller" align="center"> 5,759 | -26% |
| April | 4,745 | class="smaller" align="center"> 6,094 | -22.1% |
| 2008 | 2007 | | |
| January | 3,927 | class="smaller" align="center"> 5,947 | -34% |
| February | 4,326 | class="smaller" align="center"> 5,894 | -26.6% |
| March | 5,759 | class="smaller" align="center"> 8,101 | -28.9% |
| April | 6,094 | class="smaller" align="center"> 8,729 | -30.2% |
| May | 6,927 | class="smaller" align="center"> 9,751 | -29% |
| June | 7,656 | class="smaller" align="center"> 10,612 | -27.9% |
| July | 7,274 | class="smaller" align="center"> 9,730 | -25.2% |
| August | 6,804 | class="smaller" align="center"> 9,733 | -30.1% |
| September | 6,371 | class="smaller" align="center"> 6,794 | -6.2% |
| October | 5,397 | class="smaller" align="center"> 6,559 | -17.7% |
| November | 3,910 | class="smaller" align="center"> 5,774 | -32.3% |
| December | 4,232 | class="smaller" align="center"> 5,033 | -15.9% |
| Source: Illinois Assn. of Realtors | |||
Mortgage rates at record lows and incentives such as the federal homebuyer tax credit aided April sales, the Realtors' group said in a release Wednesday.
"Illinois home sales are showing some signs of life as people take advantage of the favorable buyers' market conditions and the federal stimulus package incentives," Pat Callan, president of the association and owner of Realty Executives Premiere in Wheaton, said in the release.
The 22.1% year-over-year drop in Chicago-area sales in April was the smallest so far this year.
In the nine-county Chicago region, 4,745 single-family homes and condominiums were sold in April, compared with 6,094 sales in April 2008, the association said. April sales were up 11.4% compared with March.
In the city of Chicago, April sales fell 26.9%, to 1,378 compared with 1,886 in April 2008. Sales rose 16.7% compared with March.
The Chicago-area median price — where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less — was $192,500 in April, down 21.1% from $244,000 in April 2008, the Realtors' group said.
In the city, the median price fell 26.7% in April, to $220,000 compared with $300,000 in April 2008.
"We continue to see homes in foreclosure and short sales driving prices lower in many areas of the city," David Hanna, president of the Chicago Assn. of Realtors, said in the release. "Policy changes such as allowing first-time homebuyers to use the $8,000 tax credit at closing and a streamlined process for short sales will help, but the critical issues are the rising numbers of foreclosures and restrictive lending guidelines not crafted for our urban market."
Statewide sales fell 20.9% in April to 7,593 homes, compared with 9,599 in April 2008, the Realtors' group said. April statewide sales rose 9% compared with March.
The Realtors group's sales figures include new and existing homes. The nine-county Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.
