Chicago exodus to suburbs in full swing: Broker
Local real estate broker says 'the suburbs are hot' and warns of increased competition
The exodus to the suburbs is in full swing in Chicago, according to a local real estate broker who noted on “Varney & Co.” on Tuesday that homes in the suburbs have been getting multiple offers, cash offers and offers over the asking price.
“It’s really a lot of competition out there,” Julia Lindquist with @properties told FOX Business’ Grady Trimble while speaking from inside a home in the Chicago suburbs.
Residential real estate has remained strong through the coronavirus pandemic, which has battered other sectors of the economy, with record-low mortgage rates helping to stimulate growth in home sales.
The national median home sale price soared 17% year-over-year to $330,250 this month, which is an all-time high, according to a new report from real estate brokerage Redfin.
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The report also noted asking prices of newly listed homes hit a new all-time high of $350,972, which is an increase of 10% from the same time a year ago and that new listings of homes for sale were down 17% from the prior year.
The pandemic had created a seller’s market, which is when demand for homes exceeds the supply of inventory, indicated by Redfin’s report, which showed uneven supply and demand continuing to send home prices soaring.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price index, released Tuesday, reported an 11.2% gain in January from a year earlier, an increase from 10.4% in December, marking the highest annual rate of price growth since February 2006.
Indeed, bidding wars are happening in markets across the country, including Chicago, as many Americans working remotely seek larger spaces and homes with yards, Trimble and Lindquist noted on Tuesday.
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Lindquist pointed out what she called “a shift” in the real estate market. She noted that in March and April of 2020 it “was a little bit dead,” but “everything picked up” in May and “it never really slowed down.”
“We entered the spring market in January and February [and] we are still in it big time,” she told Trimble. “I don’t know when it will slow down at this point.”
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“The suburbs are hot,” she continued, noting that “anywhere outside the central business district” in Chicago “is doing really well right now,” which is generating increased competition for prospective buyers.