Wisconsin’s existing home sales jumped 7.4% in January, but sales in Shawano and Oconto counties were down, according to the Wisconsin Realtors Association (WRA) January 2024 Wisconsin Real Estate Report.
The state’s existing home sales jump in January 2024, compared to their January 2023 levels, is the first annualized monthly increase in home sales since December 2021, which is in stark contrast to the 17.4% decline in Wisconsin sales for all of 2023 compared to 2022.
The statewide median price rose 6.0% to $265,000, relative to the same month in 2023. New listings of Wisconsin existing homes rose 10.1% in January, compared to that same month in 2023, and this led to an increase in total listings of 2.0% over that same period.
In Shawano County, the median price for a home rose from 41.4% from last year. The January 2023 median price was $152,000, compared to $215,000 in January 2024. There were 11 sales in January 2024, down from the 21 in the same month last year.
As for Oconto County, the median price increased 16.6%, from $200,950 in 2023 to $234,250. Twenty-four sales were registered in January 2024, down slightly from the 28 in January 2023.
Numbers for Menominee County were not available.
Across the state, the January 2024 median price rose 6% to $265,000 relative to that same month in 2023.
The report also showed Shawano County homes sold in January 2024 were on the market an average 74 days, up from the average of 66 days for those homes sold in January 2023.
In Oconto County, homes were on the market for 59 days in 2024, compared to 85 days in 2023.
Again, Menominee County numbers were not available, other than to indicate homes sold in January 2023 were on the market an average 248 days.
Even with more homes finding their way onto the market, there continues to be a significant seller’s advantage with just 2.5 months of inventory in January. A balanced market would have about six months of supply.
Tom Larson, WRA president and CEO, highlighted that the seller’s market remains.
“We are still in a seller’s market, and the significant unmet demand for homes by millennial buyers will probably keep it that way for the foreseeable future,” he said.
David Clark, professor emeritus of economics and WRA consultant, added that more Fed rate cuts are likely late in the year.
“The January inflation report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed improvement in headline inflation from the small inflationary spike we saw in December, but the January rate of 3.1% was the same as the rate from November,” he said. “The Fed actually focuses on core inflation, which factors out the more volatile food and energy prices, and the January core inflation rate was 3.9%. This is well above The Fed’s 2% target, which was unchanged from December. What this means is that The Fed is likely to hold off on any cuts to the federal funds rate until it sees more progress on inflation.”
Although the 30-year fixed mortgage rate has receded from its peak of 7.79% at the end of October 2023, the average January 2024 rate was 6.64%, which is 37 basis points higher than the January 2023 level of 6.27%. Even though there was a modest 2% improvement in estimated median family income over the last year, the combination of higher mortgage rates and higher prices has pushed affordability down. The Wisconsin Housing Affordability Index fell 7.1% between January 2023 and January 2024.
kpasson@newmedia-wi.com
Local home sales down in January, while increasing statewide
