A new study says that, in a period of lagging sales, Evanston’s housing market is one of the strongest in the Chicago region.
The report from the Headrick-Wagner Appraisal Group says the region as a whole now has a 7.6 month supply of houses available for sale. The firm says a market in which supply and demand were balanced would have a 3 to 4 months supply.
The Naperville firm’s analysis of multiple listing service data shows that Evanston’s inventory of available homes is among the lowest in the region — at 5.04 months worth.
That still means Evanston is tilted toward a buyer’s market, but much less so than in most of the region.
Among nearby communities, Wilmette has a 5.72 month inventory of unsold homes, Skokie has 9.15 months worth, Glenview has 9.67 months worth and in Northbrook the figure is 10.43 months of inventory.
Region-wide only three suburbs and one Chicago neighborhood have a tighter supply than Evanston.
The figures show that Evanston’s inventory is especially tight in certain price ranges — Just a 3.91 month supply of homes under $300,000 and a 4.18 month supply of homes from $500,000 to $999,999. The shortage of supply at the low end of the market also occurs in many other communities.
Headrick-Wagner calculates its estimate of housing supply by dividing active for sale listings by one-twelfth of the total of pending sales plus all homes sold over the past year.
The full report is available online.