Here's our latest update on the Dane County single family home market. All numbers are sourced from the South Central Wisconsin MLS.  

August 2024 home prices

Madison area home prices continued to rise, and by all measures: 

• The price per square foot rose from $222 in August of 2023 to $244 in August of 2024, an increase of 10 percent. 
• The median price jumped from $430,000 to $470,000, an increase of 9 percent. 
• The average price rose from $498,836 to $555,057, an increase of 11 percent. 

New MLS listings

MLS listings have rebounded (slightly) above the historical low from August of 2022. 

Active listings

Active listings (those without an accepted offer) have been rising in 2024. For the first time

We're excited to share that our team helped 17 clients achieve accepted offers in the month of August. Even better, most of our client activity was in the more affordable price categories: 

• 5 of 17 clients were in the under $300,000 price category
• 11 of 17 were under $400,000 
• 15 of 17 were under $500,000

All of this positive activity suggests that the Dane County real estate market is becoming a little more free-flowing, with more homeowners choosing to sell their starter home and move onto their next stage of life. This, in turn, is creating more opportunities for first-time buyers to make their move into homeownership. 

We're cautiously optimistic that we'll see more months like the month of August in the year ahead. We'll keep you

Madison area home and condo supply continues to improve as we head into the fall season. Here's our quick update: 

Single family homes

As of September 6th, a total of 719 Dane County homes were available for sale (without an accepted offer) on the MLS. Home supply is up 65% from the same time last year. 

Condos

A total of 210 condos were available for sale on September 6th, up 69% from the same time last year. 

The big picture

With about 2 months of supply now available in Dane County, we are beginning to see a little more balance in the home and condo markets. Buyers are experiencing a little less competition, while some sellers are realizing that they need to adjust their pricing in order to attract the right buyer.

We're

Last week we were reminiscing with a client about her home purchase 4 years ago. Four years ago, she wrote her offer for $15,000 over the list after we performed an extensive amount analysis to ensure she wasn't overpaying for her home. 

Our concerns about overpaying almost seem a little silly in hindsight. Dane County home values have grown by more than 40 percent over the last 4 years, which means our client's home is now worth about $250,000 more than what she paid for it. 

Our client's story is just the latest reminder that buying and holding real estate continues to be a time-tested way to build wealth. Of course it isn't necessarily easy to buy in this market. But if you can find a way to buy the right home for your current stage of life, it

How common are foreclosures in the Madison area? We've run the latest numbers from the Wisconsin Circuit Court database, and foreclosures continue to be a relatively rare event in Dane County. Through the first 7 months of the year, a total of 147 foreclosures have been filed, which is the fourth lowest total this century. 

We don't expect a significant increase in foreclosures anytime soon, and for a few key reasons: 

• Today's lending practices are much improved from the bad practices that preceded the foreclosure epidemic 15 years ago. 
• Many homeowners continue to enjoy a low monthly payment and a sub 4 percent interest rate. 
• Most homeowners have built up a large amount of equity in their home and are low-risk for ever being

Here's a quick look at the latest new construction trends in Dane County. And a quick thank you to Dominic Collar from MTD Marketing Services of Wisconsin. Dominic has been collecting this data for many years, and he continues to generously share it with us. For more information, please call Dominic at 920-450-6131. 

Dane County year-to-date housing starts

New construction remains flat, even though our population is growing. A total of 750 housing starts were recorded in Dane County through the month of July, slightly below the 773 housing starts through July of 2023. Note from the chart below that new construction is down by roughly 50 percent compared to the peak home-building years in the early 2000s. 

Average value and square footage

It's been awhile since we've reported on the Dane County multifamily real estate market. Here's a brief update on the latest trends for income properties in the Madison area. 

New multifamily listings

Note from the chart below that listing activity for income properties closely resembles the listing activity for single family homes. Through the first 7 months of 2024, only 162 Dane County income properties were listed for sale on the MLS -- the lowest year year-to-date total on record. 

Months of supply

As of August 16th, there were only 34 active income property listings on the MLS (without an accepted offer). With just 1.9 months of supply available for sale, multifamily inventory remains tight in Dane County. 

Here's our latest update on the Dane County condominium market, with plenty of insight and observations sprinkled in. Do you have questions about buying or selling a condo in the Madison area? Please feel free to contact us for a helpful conversation. We'd love to help you. Our July report follows...

Madison area condo prices

The Dane County price per square foot grew from $226 in July of 2023 to $234 in July of 2024, an increase of 4 percent. Through the first 7 months of the year, the price per square foot is up 7 percent. We are seeing signs that the growth in condo prices may be moderating, which would be a positive step toward a more balanced market. We'll be tracking condo prices closely in the months ahead. 

New MLS listings

Dane County home prices set new records in the month of July, fueled by strong buyer demand. Here's our latest update on the Madison area single family home market. 

July 2024 home prices

Home prices continued to rise by all measures: 

• The price per square foot rose from $224 in July of 2023 to $248 in July of 2024, an increase of 11 percent. 
• The average price rose from $506,389 to $569,541, an increase of 12 percent. 
• The median price jumped from $446,000 to $492,000, an increase of 10 percent. 

Year-to-date prices through July

Year-to-date prices were higher by all measures, too: 

• The price per square foot rose from $224 during the first 7 months of 2023 to $240 during the first 7 months of 2024, an increase of

It happens every four years. We receive questions like these as we approach each presidential election:  

• Will mortgage rates change based on who becomes the next president? 
• Should I enter the market before or after the election takes place?  
• What is likely to happen to the market if candidate x becomes president? 

Although there's plenty of chatter in the media about the next election, our experience is the election results don't significantly impact the direction of the market. What does clearly change over time are the life goals and personal circumstances that guide your real estate decisions.

We hope you'll choose to buy or sell based on what you want for your life, not due to concerns about outside events. And of course we'll