The word to describe the 2017 North Shore real estate market is Stable. Prices, market times and the number of sales all stayed very consistent with 2016 statistics. In fact, we have had 3 years in a row of a market that has moved more or less sideways. The median price of North Shore homes had no change. The number of home sales increased by 3%, and market time went up 5%. Here are the 2017 statistics:
| Number of Homes Sales | Average Market Time | |||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | 2016 | 2017 | |||||
| Wilmette | 385 | 367 | 94 | 110 | ||||
| Evanston | 488 | 465 | 74 | 72 | ||||
| Winnetka | 242 | 255 | 163 | 159 | ||||
| Glenview | 560 | 571 | 98 | 110 | ||||
| North Shore | 4521 | 4657 | 110 | 116 | ||||
| Average Home Price (in thousands) | Median Home Price (in thousands) | |||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | % Change | 2016 | 2017 | % Change | |||
| Wilmette | 859 | 858 | 0% | 740 | 725 | -2% | ||
| Evanston | 604 | 623 | 3% | 519 | 535 | 3% | ||
| Winnetka | 1394 | 1341 | -4% | 1225 | 1123 | -8% | ||
| Glenview | 631 | 633 | 0% | 535 | 545 | 2% | ||
| North Shore | 672 | 680 | 1% | 535 | 537 | 0% | ||
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.
Inventory: In general inventory dropped in 2017. After several years of higher than normal inventory in many suburbs, it moved to more normal levels. Wilmette currently has 89 active, not under contact, homes which is 25% less than this time last year. Evanston also currently has 89 active homes which is up from last year, but still a relatively tight inventory for a suburb of its size. It is the one local suburb that has consistently had a low inventory of homes and it continues to have a tighter inventory than other suburbs and thus its median price has seen upward movement. Winnetka currently has 96 active homes which is a drop of 17%, but is still on the high side. Glenview has 172 active homes which is a 20% decrease. The North Shore as a whole has 2785 active homes.
Prices: 2017 played out similar to 2016 and 2015. Prices remained unchanged overall. It was a balanced market that did not overly favor Sellers or Buyers. The early part of the year was more favorable to Sellers, but as the year went on Buyers gained more leverage and were able to negotiate more aggressively. As a result of this increased leverage, prices dipped a little in the later part of the year. The year as a whole was flat for prices.
Interest Rates: Interest rates was very stable throughout 2017 staying at about 4% throughout the year for the 30 year fixed rate. In 2016 they went up from 3.5% to 4% late in the year and they have stayed at that level ever since.
Short Sales/Foreclosures: 6% of North Shore single family homes sales in 2017 were either a short sale or a foreclosed property being re-sold by the lender. This percentage continues to decline. Last year it was 8% of sales, and in 2013 it was 14%. This number peaked in 2010 at 23%.
2017 North Shore Sales Facts: The highest sale price in the North Shore was a lakefront Wilmette home that sold for $7,500,000. This home was set on an acre of land and featured a boat launch, indoor theatre, and an elevator.
The lowest sale price: $91,750; Longest market time: 1033 days; Most Bathrooms: 9 (big drop from last year’s 13); Suburb with the most sales at 4 million and above: Winnetka with 4, Lake Forest and Glencoe each had 3.
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