Another month, another strong housing report from the WRA (Wisconsin Realtor's Association). October continued a trend of strong real estate sales months in Wisconsin, with home sales were up a whopping 24.9% over the same month in 2019. The median list price also increased just over 16.3% from September 2019 to just over $227000 statewide. Of the 72 counties in the state, 11 saw decreases in median prices, up from only 5 in September.

Dane county again saw an increase in sales from the same month last year, with 834 sales, a 38.1% increase over September 2019. The average sales price stood at $325,000, an 8.9% increase over the same month last year. Dane county again had one of the highest monthly median prices, though it fell to fifth highest in the state behind Waukesha, Vilas, Ozaukee and Door counties respectively. Months of inventory for Dane county--an indicator of whether the market is trending towards buyers or sellers--dropped to 2.8, a 26.3% decrease from September 2019. A reminder, 6 months of inventory is considered a balanced market, with anything below that favoring sellers. By that metric, Dane County was an even stronger sellers' market in October.

Why are prices continuing to trend upwards? Predominantly because supply is not meeting demand. In October, listings statewide again were down nearly 27%, whiles sales increased. This continuing strong demand is pushing prices higher. Record low interest rates have kept homes relatively affordable, and those rates are expected to remain low for the foreseeable future. 

While it's hard to predict where this record-setting market will go, we do know that the winter months do tend to see a slow down, with a more competitive market for buyers. Some indication of that is the increase in number of counties which saw price decreases last month. And as always, the wider the search, the more likely a buyer is to find a bargain, or at least a more competitive environment.