The housing market in the Chicago metropolitan area experienced steady improvement in 2015, with the median sales price and the number of home sales rising over the previous year, according to a new report from RE/MAX.
According to the RE/MAX report, the median price for all homes sold in the seven-county Chicago metro area rose 8% from 2014 to $211,000.
Additionally, the total number of homes changing hands reached 109,676, up 7% over the prior year.
The RE/MAX analysis was based on homes sales data collected by MRED, the regional multiple listing service, for the Illinois counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.
The RE/MAX report showed that both transaction volume and median sales price were up for the year in each of the seven counties.
“While results for the first half of 2015 were a bit stronger than those for the second half, the market maintained its positive momentum right through December,” said Jim Merrion, regional director of the RE/MAX Northern Illinois real estate network.
“It seems likely that 2015 sales volume was restrained by the relatively modest inventory of homes for sale, but that helped generate stronger pricing for those homes that were on the market,” Merrion added.
According to RE/MAX’s report, 2015 ended on a strong note, with December sales in the metro area rising 3% to 8,193 units and the December median price increasing 8% to $200,000.
The city of Chicago itself accounted for 25% of all sales in the metro area in 2015, with 27,449 units sold, an 8% increase over 2014. The median sales price climbed 7% to $261,500.
According to RE/MAX’s report, the segment of the market most impacted by limited inventory was attached homes, which include condominium apartments, townhouses and cooperatives.
Sales activity for attached homes rose 4% in 2015 to 39,925 units, while the median price rose 9% to $180,000.
RE/MAX’s report also showed that an increased supply of detached homes helped generate an 8% increase in sales activity to 69,751 homes, while the median sales price gained 5% to $225,000.
