Chicagoland home prices soar to new heights 

Home prices in Chicagoland are soaring, signaling that the housing market is bouncing back after a sluggish 2023.

The median asking price for homes in the Chicago area surged to a record high of $362,561 in the week ending April 21, marking a 7 percent increase year-over-year, Crain’s reported, citing Redfin data.

That’s also a 15 percent jump from April 2021, when the post-pandemic housing boom was just getting started. 

Real estate agents like Akos Straub of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago are feeling increased confidence among sellers despite the backdrop of high interest rates. Straub noted that low inventory is fueling buyers’ willingness to meet elevated price points.

Anne Connolly Rief, an agent for @properties Christie’s International Real Estate, underscored sellers’ reliance on market data to justify their pricing strategies. Rief recently listed a condo in Ravenswood for $869,000, optimistic about its potential to attract offers exceeding the asking price given current market conditions.

Beyond the Chicago area, national trends also reflect a reinvigorated housing market, with median asking prices hitting a record high of $415,925 last week, the outlet reported. The Midwest has been the big winner. Other cities in the region such as Milwaukee, Rockford, Illinois, and Indianapolis, are witnessing similar spikes in asking prices, with Rockford experiencing the largest jump of 14.7 percent year-over-year.

Rockford, which is about 90 miles northwest of Chicago, has emerged as the top residential real estate market in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal’s Realtor.com ranking.

Rockfords’ top status can be attributed to its large stock of affordable housing options, along with the growth of several industries, including healthcare, aerospace and logistics.

“We are also seeing a huge boom in entrepreneurs who are from here and opening things such as retail stores, small manufacturing companies, gift shops, restaurants and bars,” Rockford Mayor Thomas McNamara told the outlet.

These factors — coupled with a comeback following the 2008 financial crisis that had Rockford considered the nation’s foreclosure capital for a time — propelled the city’s median listing price to $235,000 in March, equating to a staggering 51.7 percent increase year-over-year, which was the largest jump of any metro in the ranking’s top 20.

—Quinn Donoghue 

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