Statewide home sales in June surged 18 percent over previous year levels to 13,111 single-family homes and condominiums. This was the best June performance since 2010, according to the Illinois Association of Realtors.
The statewide median price in June was $155,000, up 3.3 percent from June 2011, the fourth straight month of median price increases in Illinois. The median price -- where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less – has risen $32,650 since January.
"The combination of low prices and even lower interest rates in June far outweighed any lingering concerns on the part of prospective homebuyers about the broader economy," said IAR president Loretta Alonzo of La Grange Park. "This year's spring selling season clearly marked a promising turn in the housing market in Illinois."
The average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central region was 3.67 percent in June 2012, down from 3.83 percent during the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.
More than half of Illinois counties reporting -- 57 of 101 -- showed year-over-year home sales increases in June 2012, and 53 counties showed year-over-year median price increases including DuPage, up 3.1 percent to $230,000; and Winnebago, up 15.1 percent to $92,000.
In the nine-county Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area, sales of single-family homes and condominiums totaled 9,156 homes in June 2012, up 22.4 percent from June 2011. The median Chicago PMSA price in June 2012 was $183,000, up 1.7 percent compared to June 2011.
The Chicago PMSA includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.