Single-Family Home Sales Down In North Center: Report

CHICAGO — While sales of North Center condominiums remained steady in the first quarter of this year, single-family sales have slowed in the neighborhood, according to a recent report released by The Wilcox Company. Only 28 units changing hands, compared to 58 a year earlier, a decline of 51.3%.

Despite the slow sales pace, the median sales price was $1,160,000, the highest median recorded for any quarter in North Center since at least 2004, and 20.8% higher than for the same period last year, Wilcox reported. During the quarter, average market time — which is the number days a home is listed before going under contract — fell to 133 days from 178 days last year.

In the attached market, which includes condominium and townhouses, 70 units sold during the quarter, up from 69 units a year ago, and the median sales price rose to $440,000 from $430,000, a gain of 2.3%, according to the report. Average market time rose to 118 days from 78 days last year.

There were 15 sales of multi-unit buildings during the quarter, compared to 16 last year, and the median price climbed 4.6% to $620,000.

The North Center area extends from Diversey Parkway north to Montrose Avenue and from Ravenswood Avenue west to the Chicago River. It includes the neighborhoods of Roscoe Village, Hamlin Parkand Northcenter/St. Ben’s.

“The low level of sales activity in the single-family market is unexpected, and the dip in sales is much more pronounced than the -8.4% decline in Chicago single-family sales during the first quarter,” said Mary Jo Nathan, a broker associate with The Wilcox Company, who did the analysis of North Center sales.

Nathan has specialized in residential properties on Chicago’s North Side for nearly two decades.

Citywide, the market for single-family homes priced at $1 million or more saw an 11.7% sales decline in the first quarter, according to Nathan, and homes over $1 million account for more than 60% of current single-family listings in North Center.

“So, there are some headwinds in that segment of the market, but we anticipate that the pace of single-family sales will rise markedly this spring. In fact, more than 50 single-family homes are currently under contract in North Center, so a rebound seems almost certain,” she said. “Meanwhile, the other segments of the market remain steady, with prices rising modestly and inventory at reasonable levels.”

North Center single-family sales during the first quarter ranged from $525,000 for a 1906 frame cottage near Berteau and Claremontavenues to $1,715,000 for a home in the 2100 block of Bradley Place. The range for attached homes was $222,500 for a vintage one-bedroom unit to $825,000 for a recently built duplex unit, according to the report. Multi-unit prices ranged from $505,000 for a two flat to $958,00 for a three-flat plus coach house.

In Chicago as a whole, first-quarter home sales fell 8.7%, with single-family sales off by 7.5% and attached sales dipping by 9.5%.