RE/MAX Luxury Report on Metro Chicago Real Estate: High-End Home Sales Rebounded Sharply in Second Quarter of 2016

CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The metro Chicago luxury home market shook off a lackluster start to 2016 and enjoyed a substantial second-quarter rebound in terms of sales activity. According to the quarterly RE/MAX Luxury Report on Metro Chicago Real Estate, 832 properties sold for at least $1 million during the quarter, compared to 741 sales in the same quarter last year, a 12 percent increase.

For the first half of 2016, luxury sales totaled 1,179 units, up from 1,122 sales during the first six months of last year.

"The luxury market is still under pressure from a large inventory of available properties, especially in the suburbs, and that helps keep prices down," noted Jack Kreider, executive vice president and regional director of RE/MAX Northern Illinois. "There were 3,104 luxury homes on the market at the end of June, about a 15 month supply based on the pace of sales over the first half of this year."

The RE/MAX report is a quarterly analysis of $1 million-plus home sales in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties from data compiled by Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED).

Kreider also pointed out that while quarterly sales activity increased, the second quarter median sales price of luxury residences in the seven-county area fell from $1,350,000 last year to $1,309,000 this year, a 3 percent decline. Average market time for the second quarter increased to 164 days from 132 days a year earlier.

City of Chicago Luxury Sales

Luxury home sales activity in Chicago was up 18 percent to 398 units, accounting for 48 percent of all luxury sales in the metro area during the quarter. For the entire first half of 2016, city luxury sales totaled 580 units, 6 percent more than the same period last year.  

The Chicago total for the second quarter included 232 detached homes and 166 attached homes. The latter category includes condominium and cooperative apartments, as well as many townhouses.

Sales of luxury detached homes rose 25 percent when compared to sales during the second quarter of 2015. Their median sales price was $1,381,250, 5 percent less than a year ago. Average market time for these homes was 150 days, up from 106 days last year.

Sales activity for the quarter increased in all but one of the seven city communities where luxury detached homes tend to be concentrated, but Lincoln Park was clearly the leader. Sales there rose to 64 units from 43 a year earlier. Smaller gains were recorded in Lake View, Logan Square, Near North, North Center and West Town. The only decrease in sales occurred in Lincoln Square, and that amounted to just a single unit.

Sales of attached luxury homes in the city also were up for the quarter, rising 8 percent compared to the same period in 2015. The median sales price dipped 6 percent to $1,325,000, while average market time fell to 92 days from 111 days. Attached luxury sales in Lincoln Park surged 56 percent to 28 units.

Suburban Luxury Sales

In the Chicago suburbs, luxury sales for the second quarter totaled 434 units, 7 percent more than the same period in 2015. However, the median sales price of a luxury suburban home dipped to $1,260,000, down 1.6 percent, and the average market time rose to 198 days from 152 days a year earlier.

There were 599 luxury sales in the suburbs over the first half of 2016, 4 percent more than for the same six-month period last year.

Glencoe, Highland Park, Northbrook and Wilmette were the suburbs with the largest percentage increase in luxury transactions during the second quarter. Sales in Glencoe totaled 31 units, representing a 107 percent increase over the same quarter in 2015. Highland Park had 20 sales, up 122 percent. Northbrook sales climbed 72 percent to 19 units, while in Wilmette, sales rose 47 percent to 50 units.

Other suburbs where luxury activity was on the upswing included Naperville, the Barrington area and Evanston. Hinsdale, one of the largest luxury markets in the suburbs, had a one-unit increase in sales, while three of the major suburban luxury markets saw sales activity decline. Sales were down 10 percent in Winnetka, 29 percent in Lake Forest and 11 percent in Glenview.

The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network, with headquarters in Elgin, Ill., consists of more than 2,300 sales associates and 106 independently owned and operated RE/MAX offices that provide a full range of residential and commercial brokerage services. The northern Illinois network is part of RE/MAX, a global real estate organization with 104,000+ sales associates in 90+ nations. 

Contact:
Stephen Johnson
RE/MAX Northern Illinois
847-428-4200
[email protected]

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SOURCE RE/MAX Northern Illinois

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