In January 2,523 homes were sold in Wisconsin, a 16.2 percent increase compared to January of 2010, according to the Wisconsin Realtors Association.
The median sales price for Wisconsin homes sold in January was $129,500, down 4.1 percent compared to the $135,000 median sales price in January of 2010. Prices fell even further, 8.5 percent, in the southeastern part of the state.
January median home sale prices were:
- Kenosha, $132,000 +6.0 percent
- Milwaukee, $104,250, -5.9 percent
- Ozaukee, $197,500, -14.9 percent
- Racine, $105,750, +2.5 percent
- Sheboygan, $100,900, +2.0 percent
- Walworth, $141,500, -12.7 percent
- Washington, $197,500, +5.1 percent
- Waukesha, $225,000, +1.4 percent
The decline in home prices could be contributing to the increase in sales.
“This is actually the second straight month in which home sales increased in the state, with sales growing over 4 percent in December and now up substantially in January,” said John Horning, chairman of the WRA board of directors and executive vice president of Brookfield-based Shorewest Realtors.
However, last year’s home buyer tax credit, which provided an artificial boost to the housing market, will make it difficult to compare 2010 and 2011 data for the next several months, Horning said.
“We won’t be surprised if sales in the next few months don’t match 2010 levels, but the fact that we are seeing solid activity in the dead of winter without federal tax incentives in encouraging,” he said.
“The federal tax incentives programs of 2009 and 2010 are distorting the comparison of sales between past and present markets,” said WRA president Bill Malkasian. “What is indisputable, however, is the fact that housing affordability is strong in Wisconsin. Inventories have been inching down over the past quarter. They are currently at 13.3 months, which is helping fuel a very strong buyer’s market. The combination of relatively low mortgage rates and moderating prices statewide makes this an excellent time for credit-worthy families to get a great deal on a home.”
