North Shore single family home sales went up 48% in the first half of 2021. Market times decreased by 43%, and median prices increased by 21%. We have been doing these reports for over 25 years and we have never seen stats like these. It was an amazing first half of the year. Now it is true that the first half of 2020 was a slower market due to the beginning of the covid pandemic. Nevertheless, the detached single-family home sales for the first half of this year are the strongest that we have ever seen. This is the highest number of sales, shortest market time, and largest price increase that we have seen.
Here are the first half statistics.
| Number of Homes Sales | Average Market Time | |||||||
| 1/2 yr-20 | 1/2 yr-21 | 1/2 yr-20 | 1/2 yr-21 | |||||
| Wilmette | 148 | 232 | 100 | 65 | ||||
| Evanston | 226 | 248 | 99 | 47 | ||||
| Winnetka | 103 | 170 | 148 | 92 | ||||
| Glenview | 246 | 397 | 149 | 76 | ||||
| North Shore | 1954 | 2899 | 144 | 82 | ||||
| Average Home Price (in thousands) | Median Home Price (in thousands) | |||||||
| 1/2 yr-20 | 1/2 yr-21 | % Change | 1/2 yr-20 | 1/2 yr-21 | % Change | |||
| Wilmette | 864 | 943 | 9% | 740 | 860 | 16% | ||
| Evanston | 618 | 760 | 23% | 568 | 667 | 17% | ||
| Winnetka | 1180 | 1438 | 22% | 965 | 1224 | 27% | ||
| Glenview | 650 | 737 | 13% | 580 | 659 | 13% | ||
| North Shore | 661 | 788 | 20% | 535 | 646 | 21% | ||
The above statistics are for detached single-family homes and were compiled from data collected by the Multiple Listing Service (Midwest Real Estate Data LLC), and may not include all home sales.
Prices: Price had a very large statistical increase. There is no question that prices went up significantly in the first half of 2021, but I believe that the statistical increase overstates that actual amount. This can be caused by a larger percentage of high-end sales. From our observation of many homes that have sold this year, we do not see them selling for 20% more than they did last year. This is the first year that we have had a significant increase in prices in the first half of the year since 2014. Last year we saw increases in the 2nd half of the year, but not the first half.
Inventory: Inventory has been very low in 2021. It dropped in 2020 and then came down even more this year. This is a driving factor for the decrease in market times and increase in home prices. All 4 suburbs that we cover in this report have under 2 months of inventory based on the pace of sales this year. Inventory is typically around 5 to 6 months. One other factor that is probably bringing down the inventory statistic is the increased use of the Realtor private network. Homes listed there are not included in inventory. Wilmette currently has 68 single family homes that are for sale that are not under contract. Last year at this time the number was 127 and typically it is about 170. Evanston has 60 single family homes for sale that are not under contract and last year had 114. Winnetka’s numbers are 51 this year and 92 last year. Glenview’s numbers are 124 this year and 226 last year. The North Shore as a whole currently has 1042 single family homes on the market that are not under contract and last year had 1763. In a typical year the North Shore would have approximately 2500 active single-family homes on the market at this time.
Interest Rates: The one number that has not changed from last July is interest rates. In 2020 they came down to about 3% for a 30-year fixed rate conforming loan and they are still right around there. Moreover, these all-time low rates have been hanging around and are starting to seem commonplace, when in fact they are quite exceptional.
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