PRINT ADS

Existing home sales in Wisconsin fell 22.2 percent during the second quarter from a year ago, a steeper decline than the Midwest region and the nation, according to a report issued Thursday by the Wisconsin Association of Realtors.

Median sale prices were down 3 percent to $162,200 from last year, better than a 7.6 percent national decline reported by the National Association of Realtors.

During the second quarter, 14,933 home sales were reported to multiple listing services in the state, down from 19,186 during the second quarter last year. These figures do not include sales that didn’t involve a real estate agent.

“It’s a mirror image of what happened in the first quarter,” said David Clark, an economist with C3 Statistical Solutions of Milwaukee. “It looks like buyers are still reluctant to dive into this market.”

The state’s home sales decline was worse than a 17.9 percent drop for the Midwest region and a national decrease of 16.3 percent. Declines in nearby states were Iowa, 31.7 percent; Illinois, 25.4 percent; Indiana, 20 percent; Michigan, 12.8 percent; and Minnesota, 10.8 percent.

La Crosse County’s 340 home sales during the quarter were down 8.4 percent from 371 last year, according to the report. The county’s median sale price was $153,800, up from $150,700 for second quarter 2007.

Clark said the modest statewide decline in median sale prices shows the stability of Wisconsin’s housing market.

William Malkesian, president of the Wisconsin Realtors Association, said the relative stability of sale prices is a good sign for homeowners.

“The majority of people look at their home and ask, ‘Do I have equity in it?’ “ he said. “We’re still holding those values.”

Many Wisconsin real estate agents don’t expect much market improvement before 2009. In an online survey conducted last week for the association, 84.4 percent said they expect fourth-quarter sales to be the same or worse than the same period in 2007.

The seasonally adjusted pace of sales in south-central Wisconsin has been stable for a year, according to Dave Stark of Stark Company Realtors.

“If you’ve been waiting or hoping for things to get better, stop,” he wrote in a recent company newsletter.