Illinois Home Sales Surge in the First Quarter, Prices Fall Slightly

Bolstered by low interest rates and the homebuyer tax credit, the Illinois housing market continued to stabilize in the first quarter of 2010, according to a report released Tuesday by the ""Illinois Association of Realtors"":http://www.illinoisrealtor.org/ (IAR).

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In the first three months of this year, Illinois homes sales, including single-family homes and condos, totaled 21,242 transactions, up 23.5 percent from the same period last year. In addition, the statewide median home sale price of $144,600 in the first quarter of 2010 was down just 0.3 percent from the first quarter of 2009.

On a year-over-year basis, first quarter home sales were up in 54 of 99 Illinois counties. And 43 of 99 counties across the state posted median price increases from last year.

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""It's clear the tax credit helped stabilize the housing market with sales trimming down inventories and price declines moderating,"" said Mike Onorato, IAR president. ""We anticipate strong sales numbers through June even with some urgency removed after the tax credit. Low mortgage interest rates and affordable home prices should continue to attract buyers.""

In the Chicagoland primary metropolitan statistical area, 14,365 homes sold in the first quarter, surging 36.7 percent from the same quarter last year. And the region's first quarter median price of $175,500 was down 6.4 percent from a year ago.

In the city of Chicago, first quarter home sales totaled 4,241 transactions, soaring 41.6 percent compared to sales in the first quarter of 2009. During the same period, the city's median home price fell 8.8 percent to $196,000.

According to Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the ""Regional Economics Applications Laboratory of the University of Illinois"":http://www.real.illinois.edu/, forecasts for the next three months of April, May, and June indicate sales increasing statewide in the 10 percent to 25 percent range and in the Chicagoland region in the 15 percent to 40 percent range compared to a year ago. In addition, he said median prices will move upward, adding almost $13,000 in Illinois and $16,000 in the Chicagoland region over the next quarter.