The inventory of listed downtown Chicago homes for sale continued to drop in the 1st quarter. There were 27.5% less such homes for sale compared to 1st quarter 2012.* There were 2,348 downtown Chicago homes for sale vs. 3,237 a year earlier.
The drop inventory can be at least partially attributed to rising sales. The number of units sold was up significantly year over year for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th quarters in 2012. The increase for the 1st quarter was 9.3%.
The median sale price was up 10.3%. Average days on market was down 35.5%. Pending sales were up 22.4%, so sales should do well this quarter.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR DOWNTOWN CHICAGO HOME BUYERS
Significantly lower inventory, rising sales, rising pending sales and lower market times signal that the buyers market is over. If you will be financing your purchase, get your mortgage pre-approval before you start touring homes. If you’re paying cash, get a proof of funds letter ready to go.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR DOWNTOWN CHICAGO HOME SELLERS
Before you get too excited about the 10.3% higher median sale price you should know that when distressed sales (short sales & foreclosures) were excluded the median sale price actually fell 2.3%. Thus, expectations should be tempered with the lower average median sale price for non-distressed sales. It’s not a sellers market yet. As always, if your home is priced right when it goes on market, it will sell in a reasonable amount of time.
DOWNTOWN CHICAGO HOMES FOR SALE
Click below to see the downtown Chicago homes for sale in your desired price range.
| $3M & Above | $2M to $3M | $1.5M to $2M | $1M to $1.5M |
| $900K to $1M | $800K to $900K | $700K to $800K | $600K to $700K |
| $500K to $600K | $400K to $500K | $300K to $400K | $200K to $300K |
QUESTIONS?
Call Fran at 773-793-4516, text or email
*Information is based on data from Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED).
Fran Bailey specializes in downtown Chicago, Lincoln Park and Lake View condos, co-op apartments and houses. She has shared home buying and selling advice since 2006 and written about over 130 Chicago high rises. To schedule showings for any listings, get a 
