Although national home sales as a whole declined through February, eight Chicago cities saw exponential sales growth through the second month of
the year, according to a new report from Mainstreet Organization of Realtors (MORe). Chicago markets that saw increased year-over-year sales growth included Hinsdale, Gurnee, Orland Park, Mount Prospect, Oak Lawn, Bartlett and Glen Ellyn.
|
2015 |
2016 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Hinsdale |
7 |
19 |
| Gurnee |
12 |
23 |
| Evergreen Park |
20 |
11 |
| Orland Park |
12 |
21 |
| Mount Prospect |
13 |
22 |
| Oak Lawn |
16 |
27 |
| Bartlett |
16 |
27 |
| Glen Ellyn |
17 |
25 |
The number of single-family detached houses sold totaled at 2,074, up from 1,941 this time last year. “All the stats are showing that it costs less today to own than ever before,” said Lynn Madison, president of Mainstreet Organization of Realtors (MORe).
In her emailed response, she referenced Dr. Lawrence Yun, chief economist and senior vice president of research at the National Realtors Association, and his statistics relating home ownership to income. “[He] has some good stats on this just recently
– costing about 15 percent of income now – was 25 percent during bubble years and is typically 20 percent,” she wrote. The report from MORe also shows that houses placed under contract rose from rose from 3,050 to 3,897 year-over-year. “With the Fed showing
signs of delaying any additional interest rate increase and positive indicators seen throughout our area, we’re seeing a lot of reason for optimism,” Madison said in the press release. When asked about the positive indicators, she referenced a specific
story about buyers looking for a downtown Naperville condo. “One comes on – they go see it at 9 in the morning, it hits MLS and have it under contract by 11,” she wrote. With multiple offers coming in and sellers not having to list homes for extended
periods of time, Madison believes sellers to be enticed by the demand.