why are Milwaukee and Wisconsin average median sale price values UP compared to last year, while most of the rest of the country is down?

It's important to note, I DON'T think people are overpaying, and neither do appraisers. I recently sent an email showing the last 12 months local appraisal data demonstrating just how FEW appraisals have come in low, you can click this link to learn more.

Nationwide, the median existing home sale price is down 3.1% compared to this time last year (May 2023 vs. May 2022), but in the Midwest as a whole, median sale price is UP 1.1% compared to this time last year!

For Milwaukee specifically, as reported by the MLS (multiple listing service), Milwaukee specifically is up 8.6% compared to last year.

The rate of sales is down nationwide, including the Midwest. We are down 20% for total number of home sales compared to this time last year. That means the whole market is moving slower.

What does this all mean for you?

Housing values, and the question of whether or not a real estate purchase is a “good idea” is hyper local to each market. 

Milwaukee and Wisconsin as a whole continues to be a solid performer, consistently rising in value, and avoiding the dramatic fluctuations up or down. If you’re only looking at nationwide data, you’ll likely be mislead!

Part of the reason is, Milwaukee would need 6,200 more listings in order to have a “balanced” market, that’s just to avoid the crazy bidding wars of 20+ offers on one property. Until we see more inventory, there will be bidding wars driving up value.

Lock-in affect doesn't help either, current homeowners who have mortgage rates <3% aren't excited about selling their house in exchange for a 6-7% mortgage rate.

Also, the Greater MKE employment market is super diversified over goods and services, and not too reliant on one employer or industry, meaning we should have stable employment for years to come. 

Not to mention, Milwaukee county is adding ~14,230 new households to the market annually and about 52% of them statistically want to buy a house or own a home, and we are building less than 500 new homes per year in the Greater Milwaukee area, so people have no where to go but fight over the same properties! See the graphic below for some more details! 

For this reason, I am optimistic property values will continue to rise!

In fact, we are predicting 16.2% appreciation over the next 5 years, or for a $248,541 house, it will be work $40,257 more in 5 years' time!

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