Illinois Home Sales, Prices Climb in March

Illinois experienced an increase in home sales and median prices over year ago levels in March, the ""Illinois Association of REALTORS"":http://www.illinoisrealtor.org/ reported.

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Home sales last month totaled 10,992, up 13.6 percent from March 2012 when sales were at 9,679. Sales across the state haven risen year-over-year each month since July 2011.

At the same time, median prices in the state showed a 3.6 percent improvement from last year, the association reported. The median price for a home stood at $135,000 in March.

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""We are entering what is traditionally the busiest period of the year in the real estate market,"" said Michael D. Oldenettel , CRS, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of Realtors and managing Broker and owner with RE/MAX Results Plus inJacksonville. ""The decreasing time it takes to sell a home, coupled with shrinking inventories shows there is keen interest on the part of homebuyers who are rushing to lock in favorable interest rates and take advantage of low, but increasing prices.""

The association also reported 44 out of 102 Illinois counties displayed annual increases in sales, while 34 posted median price gains.

In addition, home sales in the nine-county Chicago metropolitan statistical area rose 18.1 percent to 7,914 in March. The median price in the Chicago area was up 2 percent to $155,000 during the same time period.

""The inventory in both the state and Chicago markets suggest that demand has begun to return to the housing market,"" said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the regional economics applications laboratory of the University of Illinois. ""However, foreclosed properties are accounting for a sizeable portion of these sales. The good news is that foreclosed sales are outpacing new additions to the foreclosure inventory but at a cost of dampening median price increases.""