Rockford area home sale prices dip back below $200K, but remain higher year-over-year

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The average price of a home sold in the Rockford region dipped below $200,000 for the first time in three months, but prices were still up from the same month a year ago.

The latest data from the NorthWest Illinois Alliance of Realtors shows the three-month rolling average price of a home sold in Boone, Winnebago and Ogle counties was $197,290 in October. That’s 4.5% higher than October 2022.

The average price of home sales in the region cracked $200,000 for the first time in July, and hit a record high $205,198 in August.

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The pace at which homes sold was quicker than this time a year ago, with homes spending an average of 15 days on the market in October compared to 19 in October 2022.

“Prices continue to increase, while market time decreases,” Conor Brown, CEO of Northwest Illinois Alliance of Realtors, in a news release. “This shows there is a steady stream of people who need to buy, and motivated sellers are taking advantage of the speed and strength of the market.”

The number of homes and condos sold in October fell about 5% to 349 in October. That means year-to-date sales are down 17% from 4,578 in 2022 to 3,273 through the first 10 months of this year.

The number of new listings on the market rose 3.5% to 411 properties in October. That’s the biggest year-over-year gain in 21 months. It was also the first time in several years that new listings increased for a second consecutive month, according to the Realtors group.

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Despite the increase in new listings, the total number of homes for sale dropped about 22%. There were 360 homes for sale at the end of October compared to 464 a year ago. That happened because buyers snapped up new home listings quickly, leading to no major increases in inventory, the Realtors group said.

“Inventory shortages continue to be one of the biggest challenges for buyers in the market,” Brown said. “Prices are up partly because of elevated mortgage rates, it will be interesting to see what effect dropping mortgage rates will have on the market in the next few months, as we could see demand for housing become even stronger.”

The weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 7.29% the week ending Nov. 22, down from a two-decade high of 7.79% a month ago,according to Freddie Mac.

The Realtors group said circumstances for buyers remain difficult with rising prices and high mortgage rates. But home sellers have seen major appreciation in their property’s market value.

“The fact is a typical homeowner has accumulated more than $40,000 in housing wealth over the past three years,” Brown said. “People contemplating selling should really do so now.”

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas