The Illinois housing market continued to bounce back in September with a surge in home sales and higher median prices. Both median prices and sales experienced a positive annual change in both Illinois and the Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the Metro Chicago Housing Market, which comprises the nine counties, 12,451 properties were sold, changing by -7.9% from a month ago and 38.7% from a year ago, according to the latest report by Illinois REALTORS.

Sales of both single-family homes and condos surged by 43.3% and 30.5% respectively. With continued record low-interest rates, there's an increase in demand for properties as indicated in the 38.7% increase in closed sales of all properties.

However, as cold weather approaches the month over month sales would see a traditional decline. The sales predicted for October, November, and December suggests an increase on a yearly basis and a decrease on a monthly basis for both Illinois and the Chicago PMSA

Chicago home prices are on the rise due to a very tight supply and low mortgage rates. More homebuyers are entering the bidding wars to scoop up their favorite deals. According to local realtors, the housing market will remain hot even when the weather is cooling. Stronger buyer activity will continue with speedy sales and multiple offers leading to price gains.

The median price forecast for Chicago MSA is 12.4% in October, 13.1% in November, and 12.6% in December. The annual sales forecast shows an increase in the range of 24.2% to 32.7%. On a monthly basis, the three-month average sales are predicted to decrease in the range of -6.3% to -8.5% (source: Illinois Realtors®).

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The Metro Denver housing market remains consistently hot. October continued to defy the cooling trend of the winter season as new records were broken by both buyers and sellers. This trend is largely driven by low-interest rates. Denver and the entire metro area remains a seller’s real estate market, especially in the $300,000 to $399,000 price range where it's getting even more difficult for buyers to compete.

Denver Metro saw a 2.4% increase in the number of homes sold through the third quarter of 2020. The area was recently named the second-best city to live in the country by U.S. News and World Report. Residential $3,363,002,016 sales volume represents the highest October on record and the fourth-highest month of all time.

The previous high in October was in 2019 at $2,487,936,752. July of 2020 was the all-time record at $3,965,805,480. Detached homes are the preference for many homebuyers today. In the last month, there was a record-high for the average sales price for both single-family detached and attached properties at $625,100 and $393,733 respectively, according to the Denver Metro Association of Realtors.

The median closing price on a single-family home was $519,900 in October, an increase of 1.9% from September and 14.3% over the past year. The average closing price was $625,100, a 4.5% gain from September, and an 18% increase over the past year. October also saw a record-low of months of inventory at an astonishing 0.81.

The reason inventory is so tight is that sellers haven’t matched the enthusiasm buyers are showing in this pandemic. Active listings across both detached and attached single-family homes at the end of October 2020 stood at 4,821, a record low for October by nearly 2,000 listings. The number of active listings in metro Denver at the end of October was 4,821, a decline of 9% from September, and 43.7% from a year earlier.

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