Statistics Explained

Everyone wants to make a good decision when they purchase and selling a home. How does one make an educated decision in the Grundy and Will County real estate market? Use of statistics can help you better understand the local market conditions and make solid buying and selling decisions.

Understanding Average and Median Sales Prices
If you’ve decided that this is the region you’d like to live in or already live here and are thinking of selling, look at the average and median sales price numbers for that area. This will tell you if prices are increasing or decreasing in that area, so you know if you should be making (ar expecting) offers at prices greater than the most recent sales, equal to the most recent sales, or less than the most recent sales.

Number of Sales and Timing the Market
Take a look at the unit sales chart for the area in which you’re interested in buying a home. In some parts of the county, sales go up in summer. In others, sales go down in summer. Look at the seasonal trend of sales so that you understand how much competition you’ll have. In winter, there are typically fewer sales, so you’ll be competing with fewer buyers. In summer, there are typically more sales, so you’ll be competing with more buyers. Knowing the current sales climate helps you decide how competitive to make your offers and counter-offers.

Buyer or Seller Market?
The months of inventory numbers tell you who typically has more negotiating power during a sale. A balanced market is right around 6 months. If the current months of inventory for the area you like is much higher than that, then buyers can probably negotiate fairly aggressively. If the months of inventory figure is low, then a sellers are less likely to negotiate. There are always exceptions, of course, depending on each seller’s/buyer’s motivation.

Will there be competition for the home that I want?
The list and sales price distribution chart is helpful for several reasons. If you want to buy a home in an area and price bracket where the number of listings closely equals the number of sales, chances are that you’ll have a lot of competition for that home. If you want to buy a home in a price bracket and area where there are far more listings than sales, then you’ll have a wide selection and most likely more negotiating power.