How COVID-19 Has Changed the Real Estate Contract Process and How the Wheaton Real Estate Market Is Responding

I want to go into more detail on the different changes we've seen to the real estate contract process since the pandemic began and since the Illinois Stay at Home Act was released on March 20, specifically the two addendums that were created in response to COVID-19 and what they mean. 

The Emergency Addendum
The Emergency Addendum is signed by both the buyer and seller and basically states that for as long as the Illinois Stay at Home Act is in effect should any issues or delays be experienced as a result of COVID-19 the buyer and seller are not at fault. The addendum protects both the buyer and seller and overrides the contract in the case that an extension is needed or if the contract must be deemed null and void. Let's say a buyer or seller loses their job and can’t close on the house, this addendum would make the contract as null and void and the buyer would get their earnest money back.

COVID-19 Certification for Property Showings
The buyer or whoever enters the home will fill out the certification and send it to the seller. It basically asks if the buyer has been diagnosed with or tested positive for COVID-19, has a COVID-19 test pending, is under quarantine directed by a healthcare provider due to COVID-19 concerns, has traveled in the past 14 days to a high-risk area, has had contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19, or has had contact with someone who had contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19.

The purpose is to give sellers who still have their house on the market and are still opening their doors for showings extra reassurance in addition to social distancing, hand sanitizer, gloves, masks, wipes, etc.

Market Update
As far as Wheaton goes, since March 20 (11 days ago), there are 227 active listings. Of those listings, seven have hit the market since March 20 and are houses that have not been listed in at least in the past year. Four of these listings are priced between $300,000 and $500,000, and three are priced between $500,000 and $700,000. So, if you think that nothing is hitting the market right now, that’s definitely not the case despite all that is going on. These numbers are likely lower than the average for this time of year, but we are still seeing new listings.

Twenty-seven houses have been temporarily taken off the market since March 20 when the Illinois Stay at Home Act was put into effect. I'm guessing the majority of these homes were taken off the market because the sellers are waiting until things settle down before the re-listing. Five listings have gone under contract but re-activated since March 20, likely due to COVID-19. There are currently 110 listings under contract in Wheaton and out of those 110 16 went under contract since March 20, which is over one house per day. And 25 listings have closed since March 20.

It's important that when you watch the news and they're reporting on national, state, or Chicago real estate market data, those numbers aren't always indicative of what is happening in your area. Real estate is very local and what's happening in your town might not be happening in the state or even the next town over. Stay focused on the local numbers, especially if you're trying to decide what's best for your family during this time.

If you're interested in seeing the date for your area to help you decide whether or not you want to go forward with buying or selling, feel free to at jnewsom@bhhschicago.com or (773) 580-5840. I'm here for you and always happy to help.