2021 home sales topped even 2020 growth
Housing sales continued to accelerate in 2021, with 8.9% more detached single-family Chicagoland homes sold and 20.9% more attached Chicagoland homes sold than in 2020, according to statistics released today by the Mainstreet Organization of REALTORS® (Mainstreet).
That's on top of the growth seen in 2020, when 12.8% more detached single-family homes and 4.5% more attached homes were sold than in 2019.
"COVID changed protocols for buying and selling homes, but it also intensified the demand for homes," Mainstreet Board of Directors President John LeTourneau said. "Each new variant has just continued to reinforce the need for people to have a home they feel comfortable in. So it's no surprise to see this activity continue two years into the pandemic."
With so much demand for homes, prices have continued to appreciate. The median sale price of a detached single-family home was $325,000 in 2021, compared to $289,900 in 2020 and just $267,500 in 2019. The median sale price of an attached home in 2021 was $195,500, compared to $179,200 in 2020 and $172,400 in 2019.
"The past few years have reinforced the value of homeownership in Chicagoland and throughout the nation," Mainstreet CEO John Gormley said. "As we've dealt with the coronavirus and spent more time in our homes, people truly want to live in places they can call their own and personalize to their needs."
The following suburbs saw particularly strong growth in detached home sales: Buffalo Grove (27.3% increase in detached home sales); Chicago Ridge (28.0%); Crete (20.1%); Darien (21.2%); Evergreen Park (23.0%); Franklin Park (21.2%); Gurnee (20.7%); Hazel Crest (28.6%); Hinsdale (25.3%); Inverness (24.2%); Lombard (21.8%); Markham (23.8%); Midlothian (32.8%); Oak Brook (59.1%); Park Forest (24.6%); Rolling Meadows (24.0%); Sauk Village (49.0%); Steger (20.4%); Vernon Hills (29.1%); Wheeling (26.3%); Willowbrook (22.2%); and Wood Dale (43.6%).
"Looking ahead, inflation and interest rates are the main things to watch for in 2022,"LeTourneau said. "We could be looking at a real erosion of buying power, even though people will continue to want new homes. That's the pressure on the market that I see coming."