Tracy Cross & Associates, Inc.
4th Quarter 2024
Despite a rather slow 4th Quarter, Chicago area production homebuilders sold over 5,000 new homes in 2024 for just the third time in the last 15+ years. With 5,008 net contracts written during the most recent 12-month period, sales were generally consistent with the 5,058 units sold in 2023, and up roughly 15 percent compared to the 4,338 net contracts in 2022.
Sales for the year were particularly strong in the suburbs led by the single family sector with 3,397 transactions in 2024, up 7.8 percent compared to 2023’s volume of 3,152 units. Among attached sector communities, however, the year culminated with 1,439 total sales in the suburbs, a drop of 13.3 percent compared to the 1,659 units sold in 2023.
In the city of Chicago, where new production housing consists entirely of multifamily for sale idioms, sales continued their downward trend with 170 contracts recorded in 2024, a 31.2 percent drop from the 247 sales posted in 2023.
Regionwide, D.R. Horton led all homebuilders in 2024 with 1,084 contracts, followed by Lennar and Pulte at 1,015 and 842 homes sales, respectively. Rounding out the top five were M/I Homes with 728 transactions and Ryan Homes with 419 sales.
Most notable during the 4th Quarter 2024 was the opening of 40 new home communities throughout the suburbs. For reference, a typical quarter usually sees just 10-15 new market entrants. And, while these new developments had rather modest initial sales, most began their marketing efforts toward the end of the 4th Quarter 2024. As such, 1st Quarter 2025 sales figures are expected to be robust considering such a significant increase in supply. Note: among the 40 new development openings during the 4th Quarter 2024, 35 occurred among the region’s top five homebuilding companies led by Lennar.