Real Estate
New Lenox Home Sales Double as Chicago Area Hits Six-Year High
New Lenox real estate market climbed in September as the bulk of the Chicago area saw a bump in year-over-year comparisons.
Home sales in the Chicago area during September were at a six-year high, according to a recent RE/MAX report—and most of the Southland saw a similar boost.
Percentage wise New Lenox saw a significant boost in sales; they were up by 100 percent. But the actual numbers were low. During the month of September 2012, a total of 30 homes were sold. Last year September sales totaled 15, according to the Mainstreet Organization of Realtors (MORe). The average price of homes sold in New Lenox in 2012 declined to $235,225. Last year the average price for an existing home was $264,710. These figures represent a 11.1 percent decline in prices.
Read "New Lenox Ranked No. 2 in Will County in New Housing Starts"
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The numbers don't tell the whole story
"We've been hit as hard as every other community," said Mayor Tim Baldermann. "There's no doubt that the sale of existing homes are sluggish and the price tag is dropping."
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In New Lenox, part of the reason it's tough to sell an existing home is the drop in the cost of building new construction. Before the economy tanked, the average price of a newly constructed home was about $350,000. Now that same home is being built for between $250,000 to $300,000.
"Builders are taking a hit. They're in a bind," Baldermann said. "They have to unload the parcels they have in order to stay afloat. So the buyer of a newly constructed home is benefiting. In the past year, 92 homes have been built in New Lenox."
Read "New Lenox Foreclosure Rate Among Lowest in Chicago Area."
Overall existing home sales are on the rise
Across the Chicago area, the number of homes sold in September rose by 22 percent over Sept. 2011, according to RE/MAX. At 7,396 transactions, it was the busiest September for home sales since 2006.
“We continue to see good news in the Chicagoland housing market,” said Laura Ortoleva, media spokesperson for the RE/MAX Northern Illinois real estate network. “Sales are up, average days on the market continue to drop and home prices are stabilizing. These are trends everyone likes to see.”
# of homes sold Avg. price Town 2012 2011 % change 2012 2011 % change CHICAGO HEIGHTS 19 12 58.3% 47,468 47,116 0.8% EVERGREEN PARK 17 18 -5.6% 120,617 131,355 -8.2% FLOSSMOOR 10 9 11.1% 155,600 257,055 -39.5% FRANKFORT 19 16 18.8% 328,805 331,031 -0.7% HOMEWOOD 14 11 27.3% 105,942 116,444 -9% MOKENA 14 11 27.3% 250,285 315,318 -20.6% NEW LENOX 30 15 100% 235,225 264,710 -11.1% OAK FOREST 15 13 15.4% 162,733 168,284 -3.3% OAK LAWN 33 33 0% 181,400 162,848 11.4% ORLAND PARK 22 19 15.8% 275,318 283,942 -3% PALOS HEIGHTS 8 5 60% 254,612 340,400 -25.2% PALOS HILLS 4 7 -42.9% 173,682 214,257 -18.9% PALOS PARK 7 4 75% 262,000 303,915 -13.8% TINLEY PARK 29 14 107.1% 229,024 183,507 24.8%Source: Mainstreet Organization of Realtors
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