Chicago-area home prices fall for first time in 12 years

Chicagoland’s home prices are finally on the decline after holding tough to start the year, when most major markets around the nation were already going through noticeable drops.

The median price of a home sold in the nine-county metropolitan area was $320,000 in April, down 1.5 percent from a year prior, Crain’s reported, citing data from Illinois Realtors. That may sound like an insignificant drop, but it’s the first sign of home prices falling outside of the city, and the last time there was a decline in the nine-country metro was more than 12 years ago.

Home sales prices have tapered off since the housing boom peaked last June, when the median sale price reached $340,000. However, the suburbs seemed impervious to a cooling market. As of March, prices in the suburbs had flatlined compared to the previous year, with the median price settling at $310,000.

Within the city limits, however, the drops have been much larger. The median price in April was $340,000, down 8.1 percent from $370,000 in April 2022.  That’s the biggest year-over-year decline in city prices since February 2012, when prices were down 8.9 percent. Chicago’s median home prices have been down in seven of the past eight months compared to a year prior. 

Meanwhile, Chicago’s home sales volume continues to fall. 2,028 homes sold last month, down 37.6 percent year-over-year and down 20.1 percent from April averages in the years of 2016 to 2020. Within the metro, 7,593 homes sold in April, marking a 31.2 percent dip year-over-year.

A big reason for the drop in sales volume is low inventory levels. After the housing boom, there weren’t a whole lot of properties left to sell. Plus, rising interest rates are causing would-be buyers and sellers to wait until the market stabilizes.

— Quinn Donoghue 

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