First quarter reports are out. Well, there are no huge surprises, but one little surprise. Sales were down from last year, way down: -29% in Cook County and -29% for Lake County. We all saw that coming. And, the average sale price in Lake County was down 2.5% from last year. Again, that was expected.
But, the average sale price in Cook County was up 5.9% over last year. –Not bad for a correction! Heck, that is nice appreciation! I imagine that appreciation will flatten out a little over the coming months, but it does demonstrate the strength of our market.
Once again, we are reminded of how localized real estate is. National headlines are only marginally helpful in gauging local market conditions. Our home values have been hanging tough.
On the other hand, one could argue that the volume of sales wouldn’t have been so low if prices had come down more, or “corrected” more. I don’t know; it is difficult to speculate on causes and effects here. Regardless, as a homeowner, I feel good about the value of my home. And as a buyer’s agent, I feel secure in telling my buyers that they are making a good investment in the Barrington-Palatine-Inverness area.
Filed under: Barrington, For Buyers, For Sellers, Market Statistics, Palatine, Regional News
