MADISON — The Wisconsin REALTORS Association (WRA) recently released its April 2024 Wisconsin Real Estate Report. Wisconsin’s existing home sales jumped 25.7% in April 2024 compared to their April 2023 levels. The statewide median price rose 6.4% to $300,000, relative to the same month in 2023. There was an increase in total listings of 6.1% in April compared to that same month in 2023.
“We’ve got a way to go before the market becomes balanced, but at least it’s moving in the right direction. The growth trend in listings has really helped our sales this year, and it bodes well for robust growth this summer,” said Mary Jo Bowe, 2024 WRA Chair of the Board of Directors.
Tom Larson, WRA President & CEO noted that millennials remain committed to homeownership, which increases home sales.
“There are significant unmet housing needs for millennial buyers, the oldest of whom are now in their early 40s. Even though average monthly mortgage rates have been increasing throughout 2024, millennials remain committed to homeownership, which is a big reason home sales have rebounded this year,” Larson said.
A comparison of April housing prices in Wisconsin shows median prices up just over 40% since the pandemic hit in 2020, according to David Clark, Professor Emeritus of Economics and WRA Consultant.
“A lot of that increase took place between 2020 and 2022, when median prices rose almost 25% in total. In contrast, the last two years have seen 12-month home price increases of just 5.4% in April 2023, and only 6.4% in April 2024,” Clark said. “Since homeownership expenses make up about one quarter of the overall weight of the Consumer Price Index, which is the index used to measure inflation, it’s good to see some moderation in home price appreciation. Hopefully this will continue as the Fed works to meet its 2% inflation target.”
The report highlights:
● Strong buyer demand combined with ongoing improvements in listings pushed existing home sales up dramatically and put pressure on prices.
● Wisconsin home sales rose 25.7% in April relative to that same month last year, and the median price rose 6.4% to $300,000 over that same 12-month period. On a year-to-date basis, sales were up 12%, and the median price increased to $285,000, which is a 6.5% increase compared to the first four months of 2023.
● Compared to April 2023, home sales rose in April 2024 by double-digit margins in every region of the state. The strongest growth was in the more rural regions with the Central region up 43.5%, the West region increasing 40.4%, and the North region growing 37.9%. More urbanized regions also grew at a healthy pace. The Northeast and South Central regions increased between 25% and 29% over the last year, and the Southeast region was up 16%.
● The statewide inventory situation continues to improve. New listings of homes rose 13% in April 2024 compared to April 2023, and total listings were up 6.1% over that same period.
● Although the market remains a strong seller’s market statewide with less than six months of available supply, the months of inventory improved 14.8%, from 2.7 months in April 2023 to 3.1 months in April 2024. The improvement was seen in every region of the state, but especially in rural counties, which increased from 3.3 months of supply a year ago to 4.1 months of supply in April 2024.
● Rising prices and mortgage rates more than offset modest growth in family income, leading to a 10.1% decline in statewide affordability over the last 12 months.