Homes in Illinois sold twice as fast in July 2021 as they did last year, continuing a hot market that again drove median sales prices higher even as total statewide sales dipped slightly, according to data from Illinois REALTORS®.

Homes sold an average of 24 days statewide in July 2021, compared to an average of 50 days in July 2020.

Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in July 2021 totaled 19,196 homes sold, down 1.0 percent from 19,387 in July 2020.

The statewide median price in July 2021 was $263,000, up 12.6 percent from $233,500 in July 2020. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.

The number of homes for sale declined to 31,425, a 30 percent drop from July 2020 when 44,864 homes were on the market.

“While the tight inventory continued to help many sellers get more than their asking prices, it appears the number of potential buyers started to dry up as the summer selling season winds down,” says Sue Miller, President of Illinois REALTORS® and designated managing broker of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Group in McHenry.

According to the data, home sales in the Champaign MSA (Champaign, Piatt and Ford counties) totaled 381 sales, a 6.4 percent increase while the median price rose 6.6 percent to $178,000. In the Kankakee MSA (Kankakee County) home sales totaled 153, a 15 percent increase. The median price increased 4.7 percent to $180,000.

“While prices continue to grow in both Illinois and Chicago, sales are forecast to decline over the next few months, a usual pattern for August, September and October,” said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, emeritus director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) at the University of Illinois. “Sales levels will be below those recorded in 2020, but still above those for 2019.”

NOTE: REAL at the University of Illinois developed a six-month forecast of what to expect through the end of the year for Illinois REALTORS®. Find the six-month forecast and watch an interview with U of I’s Hewings about trends to watch on the Illinois REALTORS® Market Stats page. The video will be available at 10 a.m.

Last month, 13,781 homes (single-family and condominiums) were sold in the nine-county Chicago Metro Area, a 2.2 percent increase from the 13,479 homes sold in July 2020.

In the Chicago Metro Area, the median home sale price in July 2021 was $310,000, an increase of 12.3 percent from $276,000 in July 2020.

In the city of Chicago, home sales (single-family and condominiums) in July 2021 totaled 3,273 homes sold, up 17.2 percent from July 2020 sales of 2,793 homes.

The median price of a home in Chicago in July 2021 was $345,000, up 5.3 percent compared to July 2020 when it was $327,500.

“In July, we saw attached home sales increase 28.4 percent, while single-family home sales decreased 1.4 percent. This is the first time we’ve seen a decrease in single-family home sales since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Nykea Pippion McGriff, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and vice president of strategic growth at Coldwell Banker Realty. “Homebuyers that were priced out of the single-family market earlier this year are being more conscientious of a home’s value and could be turning to attached homes to find the home of their dreams.”

Sales and price information are generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 23 participating Illinois REALTORS® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of August 7, 2021 for the period July 1 through July 31, 2021. The Chicago Metro Area, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.

Based on the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. data, the monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 2.87 percent in July 2021, a decrease from 2.97 percent the previous month. The average was 3.02 percent in July 2020.

Illinois REALTORS® is a voluntary trade association whose more than 50,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, Illinois REALTORS® works to protect the rights of private property owners in the state by recommending and promoting legislation to safeguard and advance the interest of real property ownership.

Find Illinois housing stats, data and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.illinoisrealtors.org/marketstats.