January 2024 single family home update

Madison area home prices continued to move higher in the month of January. Here’s our latest update on the Dane County single family home market.  

Dane County home prices

Home prices in the month of January:

• The price per square foot increased from $211 to $225 (6 percent).
• The average price increased from $471,524 to $494,110 (5 percent). 
• The median price increased from $430,000 to $450,000 (5 percent).

New listings

New listings rose for the third straight month (a positive trend), but were still very low by historical standards. A total of of 387 single family homes were listed for sale in the month of January, which was the second lowest January total this century. 

Active listings

Active listings (those without an accepted offer) are up from each of the last two Februarys, but listing availability is still running very low. Only 405 Dane County homes (or 1.1 months of supply) were available for sale on February 8th. 

Accepted offers

Dane County contract signings continue to trend lower. Only 294 listings went under contract last month, which was the lowest total for any month of January since 2012. 

Competing offers

The percentage of listings receiving multiple offers continues to run higher than an in the pre-pandemic market. This is one clear sign of pent-up demand in the Madison area, where buyers outnumber sellers. Twenty-nine percent of all accepted offers involved multiple offers in December of 2023, compared to 23 percent in December of 2019. 

Note how buyer competition varies by the seasons. Competition is highest in the springtime and early summer and lowest in the fall and early winter. 

Days on market

The average days on market edged a little higher in January, but was still very low by historical standards. 

Dane County home sales

Madison area home sales increased slightly from January of 2023, but in the big picture remained low. A lack of fresh supply continues to limit sales in Dane County. 

Expect rising home values in 2024 and beyond…

While many counties in Wisconsin are experiencing population declines, Dane County’s population continues to grow at a steady pace. For this and many other reasons, we expect rising home values for the foreseeable future.

What questions do you have about the market in the coming year? Please reach out to us with all of your real estate questions. We’re always available to share what we know, and never with any sales pressure or spin.