While cities such as Cleveland, Washington D.C., and Chicago might be lacking in terms of being hot markets, four surrounding suburbs are showing all the signs of heating up according to a recent report. Two of the towns, Winthrop Harbor and Beach Park, reside on Chicago’s north side, and the other two, Homewood and Flossmoor, reside on Chicago’s south side.
In all four of these town, home prices are increasing, the median home sale price is higher, and the time the average house spends on the market is shorter. According to data put out by the Chicago Association for Realtors, the median home price in Winthrop Harbor rose to $158,250, which is an increase of 17 percent from the start of the year. Similarly, median home prices in Beach Park have risen 14.5 percent to $170,000. For reference, the average increase in Lake County was 9.1 percent.
The number of homes sold also was on the rise, with Winthrop Harbor up 20 percent and Beach Park up 32 percent, whereas the average increase for Lake County is 4.2 percent. Further, homes are being sold at a faster pace when compared to a year prior. In the former, the average market time was down from 156 days a year prior to only 70 days, while the ladder dropped to 120 days, down from 166. Realtors in the north Chicago area attribute this boom to more affordable homes near the water, that stay cheap because they are far enough away from the city.
It’s a similar case in the south. Prices in Flossmoor are up to a median price of $205,000, an increase of 18.3 percent, as is the volume of sales, which increased 25 percent, while houses were on the market an average of 133 days. A year prior, that figure sat at 162 days.
In Homewood, the median price of a home is up 24 percent to $148,000. Number of sales increased 13 percent, compared to 3.2 percent in Cook County. Finally, homes are on the market in this town sit at around 103 days, a small drop from 107 days prior. These markets’ success is attributed to a slow recovery from the housing crash, which keeps home prices low.