CHICAGO IL REAL ESTATE STATS PACK - December 29, 2008
Good Morning!
With the New Year - new foreclosure filings are expected to jump, as borrowers' Adjustable Rate Loans reset, some Loan Modification Agreements are not lived up to, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lifts its Over-The-Holidays Moratorium on foreclosure proceedings.
However, here in Chicago, there are several organizations that can help those in distress. Read more about these opportunities via our post today at BlogChicagoHomes.com.
Here's our updated Chicago IL Real Estate Stats Pack for Monday Morning, December 29th.
Communities and clients we serve, reside, or plan to reside, include the Chicago Neighborhoods of The Chicago Loop, The Gold Coast, River North, Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Uptown, Edgewater, North Center, Lincoln Square, Albany Park, Ravenswood, Wicker Park, and Bucktown.
Also, these Great Chicago Neighborhoods: Logan Square, Rogers Park , West Ridge, Portage Park, Jefferson Park, Norwood Park, Sauganash, Edgebrook, and Edison Park. Plus All Chicago Suburbs.
SINGLE FAMILY, CONDOS, AND SMALL MULTI-UNIT PROPERTIES - NORTH SIDE OF CHICAGO, NORTH OF ADDISON STREET, WEST OF ASHLAND AVENUE
ACTV LISTINGS JUST SOLD CLOSED EXPIRED
w/e December 28th 4,234 17 32 43
w/e December 21st 4,296 35 34 53
% CHANGE -1.4% -51.4% -5.9% -18.9%
CLOSED PROPERTIES DATA
AVG SALE PRICE AVG DAYS ON MKT TOTAL VOLUME
w/e December 28th $236,412 235 DAYS $7,565,184
w/e December 21st $359,865 140 DAYS $12,235,410
% CHANGE -34.3% +67.9% -38.2%
THEORETICAL TIME TO CLEAR EXISTING INVENTORY (ABSORPTION RATE) -
w/e December 28th - LAST 12 MOS - 14.47 LAST 6 MOS - 14.56 LAST 3 MOS - 18.71
w/e December 21st - LAST 12 MOS - 14.66 LAST 6 MOS - 14.26 LAST 3 MOS - 17.90
PERCENT OF HOMES SELLING IN 180 DAYS -
w/e December 28th - 40.82% (UNSOLD - 59.18%)
w/e December 21st - 40.66% (UNSOLD - 59.34%)
SOURCE: MIDWEST REAL ESTATE DATA LLC, AREA MARKET SURVEY DATA
OBSERVATIONS
This week's sample is small, and, for that reason, not scientific. But a couple of things jump out here.
First of all, Active Listing Inventory has been stable the last few weeks, despite declines in Just Sold (Pending) inventory and Average Sale Price. This might indicate that only those properties at the lowest price ranges are selling this time of year here in the Chicago North and Northwest Side Neighborhoods we serve most frequently. Closed Properties shows many scheduling their usual end-of-month closings early, in advance of Christmas, but Sales Volume is way down, partly due to the time of year, but also due to the continuing-low Average Sale Prices.
We would expect Expired Properties to bounce strongly next week, as many agents' Listing Agreements typically expire at year's end. Average Market Time jumped sharply this past week, but I would expect some moderation to the norm (although a high norm) that we've been seeing the last few months here.
Absorption Rate, including theoretical time to clear existing listing inventory, continues to worsen. There is now nearly 19 months of inventory in our North and Northwest Side of Chicago Neighborhoods service area.
The Percentage of Sale Within Six Month (180 Days) continues weekly improvement - nearly 41% of listings we monitor here closely sell in a normal six-month marketing time frame. Hopefully, the trend toward pricing listings correctly to sell them quicker and for a higher percentage of asking price - the downward-revised asking price, on average - will continue into 2009.
Here are archived annual Chicago Neighborhood Statistics, including Units Sold and Price Trends Data, for 1992 through 2007, courtesy of The Chicago Association of Realtors.
In addition, here is an Interactive Median Price Heat Map, from the Chicago Tribune Real Estate Section, covering Every Chicago Neighborhood. View the map for links to maps for Chicago Suburbs. It is updated as new data becomes available.
RATE & MARKET WATCH
Reversing a recent trend, average 30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates jumped last week - increasing 0.42%, to 5.84%, for the week ending December 24th, according to Bankrate.com. One year ago, the Average 30-Year Fixed Rate was 6.31%.
Last week, mortgage loan re-fi's continued to escalate, causing some lenders to raise rates to temporarily reduce demand until they begin to catch up on their loan processing volume. One Chicago example involved national lender Chase Bank. Back on December 17th, Chase quoted a rate of 5.50% on a 30-year fixed mortgage loan. A week later, it was quoting 7.25%.
All the while, a small bank on the South Side of Chicago quoted 5.00% to its highest-qualified mortgage borrowers.
Very few Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARM's) are being requested these days. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), only 1 in 125 mortgage applicants request an ARM. As you might imagine, buyers are a bit concerned that ARM's might one day reset at a far higher rate than the typically-low initial rate. Lower demand has pushed up Adjustable Rates, in some cases, higher than those charged on fixed-rate mortgages.
Re-finance loans represented the lion's share of loan applications last week. According to the MBA, re-fi applications rose by 63% last week, while new-purchase loans increased by a comparatively-modest 11%.
See Holden Lewis's post via Bankrate.com for more detailed analysis and rate comparisons versus last week.
For daily news, hot information, and trends, view our Real Estate Update newsletter, via our Web Center - dean-team.com.
Call ANYTIME for specific market trends information within any Chicago Neighborhood or Suburb. We're happy to help and advise!
Have a Happy - and SAFE - New Year's Celebration Wednesday night!
DEAN MOSS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
