Real Estate

Highland Park Home Values Rise 13%

Recession's aftermath keeps supply down pushing prices up.

Home values in Highland Park and Deerfield have increased 13 percent in the last year and part of the reason is the lingering impact of the recession that sent prices tumbling six years ago.

A year ago, the average price for a single family detached home in Deerfield was $473,340 at the end of September, according to information provided by the North Shore Barrington Board of Realtors. Today it is $545,096. In Highland Park, the average value has gone from $605,214 to $694,516.

Prices were 75 percent of what they were six years ago, according to a statement made by Coldwell Banker Managing Broker Carol Strauss in May.

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“It’s supply and demand,” Michael Mazzei, senior vice president and broker manager of Koenig & Strey’s Deerfield office, said. “Inventory is selling and nothing really new is hitting the market. Mortgage rates remain low and even though the qualifying process is more arduous than before, banks are loaning money to those who qualify.”

One reason there is a shortage of available homes on the market is the enduring effect of the Great Recession. People who owe more on their homes are remaining there and making their monthly mortgage payment.

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“People who are under water (owing more to the bank that the home is worth) have repositioned themselves and are staying in their homes,” Mazzei said.

The market improvement is obvious in more than the increase in average sale price. In Deerfield a home sells 77 days after it is put on the market on the average while it was 145 days a year ago. In Highland Park, the market time has dropped from140 days to 109.

The only real difference between the two communities is how much a seller is willing to lower the price to make a deal. In Deerfield, homes sell for 93 percent of what the buyer originally asked while it was 86 percent in 2013. That number has only gone up from 88 to 89 percent in Highland Park.

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