Home Sales in Illinois Jump 25% from Year Before

Illinois home sales jumped in April, while prices made their own big leaps.

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The ""Illinois Association of Realtors"":http://www.illinoisrealtor.org/ (IAR) reported sales were up 25.3 percent year-over-year throughout the state. According to the association, statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condos) totaled 12,621 in April, the best performance for that month since 2007.

The statewide median price was $145,900, up 7.7 percent from $135,500 in April 2012.

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""The spring numbers are very encouraging, especially as we see substantial tightening of the numbers of homes on the market,"" said Michael D. Oldenettel, CRS, GRI, IAR president and managing broker/owner with RE/MAX Results Plus. ""While prices are inching up slightly due to strong demand, the interest rates continue to be a powerful lure for those who want to own a home and the spring housing market looks to be a strong one.""

Out of the 102 counties reporting to IAR, 55 showed year-over-year home sales gains, while 42 showed yearly median price improvements.

Meanwhile, the inventory of homes for sale in April was 62,503 units, a 30.6 percent drop compared to last year. The time it takes to sell a home has also fallen, with days on market averaging 89, down from 111 last April.

""The housing market is exhibiting signs of a more stable recovery with an anticipated strong early summer led by strong sales gains and more modest but still positive gains in median prices,"" noted Geoffrey J.D. Hewings , Director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory of the University of Illinois. ""Average time on the market, the growth in the pending sales index and an increase in the share of total sales captured by more expensive properties point to a return to greater stability in the market.""