Northern Illinois Housing Market Update - March 2026

Northern Illinois entered the spring market with fewer homes available but stronger completed sales than a year earlier. Across detached and attached homes combined, March closed sales increased 2.2% while inventory fell 10.8% and months supply declined to 1.5. The combined median sales price rose 6.9% to $342,000, sellers received 98.5% of original list price on average, and the affordability index declined 3.2%.

Median Sales Price -- Trailing 12 Months

Pricing and Value

Metric	Detached	Attached
Average Sales Price	$447,075 (+5.9% YoY)	$403,849 (+6.3% YoY)
Housing Affordability Index	91 (-3.2% YoY)	104 (-2.8% YoY)
Median Sales Price	$358,820 (+5.8% YoY)	$319,990 (+4.9% YoY)

Market Speed and Competition

Metric	Detached	Attached
Average % of Original List Price Received	98.2% (+0.5 percentage points YoY)	99.2% (+0.2 percentage points YoY)
Average Market Time	61 days (+1.7% YoY)	56 days (+3.7% YoY)

Homes for Sale -- Trailing 12 Months

Months Supply -- Trailing 12 Months

Supply Snapshot

Metric	Detached	Attached
Homes for Sale	9,672 (-11.2% YoY)	4,441 (-9.7% YoY)
Months Supply	1.5 (-8.2% YoY)	1.5 (-9.6% YoY)

Market Activity

Metric	Detached	Attached
Closed Sales	5,505 (+2.3% YoY)	3,004 (+2% YoY)
New Listings	9,131 (-4.6% YoY)	4,921 (-1.2% YoY)
Under Contract	7,275 (+0.2% YoY)	3,816 (+2.2% YoY)

What This Means for Sellers

• Available inventory was down sharply in both segments, falling 11.2% for detached homes and 9.7% for attached homes.
• Detached sellers received 98.2% of original list price on average, while attached sellers averaged 99.2%, indicating firm pricing conditions without guaranteeing the same result for every property.
• Closed sales increased 2.3% for detached homes and 2.0% for attached homes, although new listings declined in both segments.
• Market time increased modestly to 61 days for detached homes and 56 days for attached homes, reinforcing the importance of realistic pricing and good property presentation.

What This Means for Buyers

• Buyers faced only 1.5 months of supply in both detached and attached housing, with fewer active homes than a year earlier.
• Median prices increased to $358,820 for detached homes and $319,990 for attached homes, while affordability indexes declined in both segments.
• Attached homes averaged 99.2% of original list price and contracts increased 2.2%, suggesting limited broad-based negotiating room in that segment.
• Market time was longer than a year earlier, which may provide more time to evaluate some properties even though overall inventory remained tight.

Deeper Market Data

March activity improved from the prior year even as the pipeline remained mixed. Combined closed sales rose 2.2% and contracts increased 0.8%, but new listings declined 3.4%. Detached and attached sales both increased, while attached contract growth outpaced detached contract growth. The combination of fewer new listings, lower inventory, and rising prices points to continued supply pressure across the service area. Year to date, the larger picture was softer: combined closed sales were down 5.8%, contracts were down 1.0%, and new listings were down 3.0%. At the same time, the year-to-date median price increased 5.4% to $330,000 and the affordability index declined 5.1%, showing that reduced transaction volume had not translated into lower prices.