Milwaukee

The idea of doing data analysis is about as exciting to some as renewing a driver's license. Sometimes watching monthly figures can feel like watching grass grow. Try to ignore the confusion of high school statistics class – those regressions and cotangents can't hurt you anymore. The number crunching is done for you, so let the trend be your friend. And for the first time since 2006, the numbers are largely positive. Let's look at the cheat sheet.

New Listings in the Milwaukee region decreased 14.8 percent to 1,658. Pending Sales were down 7.6 percent to 791. Inventory levels shrank 19.8 percent to 6,976 units.

Prices softened somewhat. The Median Sales Price decreased 2.7 percent to $144,000. Days on Market was down 9.1 percent to 107 days. Absorption rates improved as Months Supply of Inventory was down 35.1 percent to 5.6 months.

It's important to watch the economy, since job growth directly fuels home purchases and since the housing industry generates jobs. The economy has added about 6.1 million jobs over the past 35 months, a sluggish but encouraging trend. Interest rates are slowly moving higher in some regions, though the affordability picture remains extremely attractive.

All data for the market reports comes from the Multiple Listing Service, Inc. and is powered by 10K Research and Marketing. You can follow this link: http://www.metromls.com/support/Market_Updates/index.html or visit www.metromls.com.

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