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Prices were up 4% in July in Illinois compared to last year, but
the increase was smaller than the month before.
Mabel Guzman in the Illinois office of the National Association
of Realtors said higher mortgage rates are one of the reasons
the housing market has slowed, but there are other factors.
“Also, we live in the Midwest, so there was one month of summer
left and I think a lot of people wanted to use that up, so there
is a certain seasonality about people making decisions,” Guzman
said. “I’ve seen it year over year in August, where folks kind
of take a break and they just want to use up every last bit of
summer and then after Labor Day, we start seeing market activity
pick up again.”
With the housing market cooling down in Illinois, sellers are
now having to change their strategy. Gone are the multiple
offers and offers well over list price.
A Realtor.com survey found that 92% of sellers accepted some
buyer-friendly terms and 41% accepted some contingencies in a
contract, a stark contrast to the bidding wars and lack of
contingency waivers in 2021.
“Sellers want the price of yesterday and the buyers want the
price of tomorrow,” mortgage advisor Kenny Simpson told Yahoo
Finance. “If you’re a seller, it’s becoming a buyer’s market. If
you’re over listed, you’re going to either have to lower the
price or take it off the market because it’s just going to sit
there.”
Many experts say housing markets in Texas, California, and the
Southwest could see the biggest price corrections because they
have been so expensive.
Guzman agrees it is now a buyers market, but inventories are
still low, especially in the Chicago area.
“Four-hundred-thousand units short, that's a lot,” Guzman said.
“If you look at the entire state, we can honestly say it's
probably 600,000 units short on housing, so there still is a
demand.”
Kevin Bessler reports on statewide issues in
Illinois for the Center Square. He has over 30 years of
experience in radio news reporting throughout the Midwest.
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