Here is the headline for this month's update: August existing-home sales fell below 4 million for the first time since June 2025, while the national supply cushion reached its highest point since 2015. The National Association of REALTORS reported existing-home sales running at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million, down 2.0% from July and 1.2% from a year earlier, with total inventory up about 5.9% year over year at a 4.9-month supply, the most since November 2015. The national median price sits at $429,100, up 1.6% from a year ago, the 38th consecutive month of year-over-year gains. On rates, the most recent published Freddie Mac survey, released September 17, holds the average 30-year fixed rate at 6.95%, a high for the year, with the 15-year at 6.26%. And the same note I give every update: no finalized September MLS dataset is published yet, so the town figures below come from the most recent available reports, and sources vary by methodology. My job is to tell you what the numbers mean for you, not just recite them.
What the national numbers mean here
Here is the useful way to read August: more homes to choose from and steadier prices, yet still the 38th straight month of national price gains. The South Suburbs felt the inventory shift first, with Will County's for-sale stock up roughly 96% from a year earlier in the latest county read, and Northwest Indiana is feeling it next. More supply is not a crash, it is a rebalancing: sellers need honest pricing, buyers get more choices and more negotiating room, and every community settles at its own pace.
Cook and Will counties
Cook County's most recent three-month read puts the median near $389,000, up about 5.1% year over year, with homes selling in about 46 days. Will County tells a different story: Zillow's average home value sits near $376,816, up about 2.7% as of the end of August, while the latest closed-sale data shows a median near $372,700 with sales down about 13% and for-sale inventory up nearly 96% from a year earlier. Translation: prices are holding, yet the pace has slowed and buyers have real choice.
Illinois towns
Frankfort is the town where sources disagree most right now. Redfin's city read runs near $550,000 for the latest month, down about 0.9% year over year with about 57 days on market; RealtyTrac's July sold median sits near $492,700, down about 3%, with inventory up about 102%; and Zillow's average home value reads near $479,709, up about 4.1%. The throughline is what matters: Frankfort has a lot more homes on the market than a year ago, so a well-priced home still moves while an aspirational asking price chases the market. Orland Park remains the most consistent demand story in the southwest suburbs, with a three-month median near $385,000, up about 5.8%, about 44 days on market and roughly four offers per home. Mokena's Zillow average value runs near $458,894, up about 5.0%, with Movoto's September listing median near $463,500. New Lenox holds the strongest price story, with Redfin's median near $485,000, up about 9%. Tinley Park's median sits near $309,000, down about 1.9%, a reminder that even neighboring towns move differently. Lemont's July sold median ran near $650,000, up about 7%, with Zillow's average value near $592,841, up about 7.6%. And Evergreen Park's three-month median comes in near $320,000, up about 20.7%, the biggest year-over-year jump of the group.
Indiana towns
Lake County's August read is the tightest story in the region: a median sale near $296,009, up about 3.9% year over year, with new listings down about 25%, pending sales down about 29% and homes selling about 12 days faster than a year earlier. That is a supply-constrained market, not a soft one. Porter County's Redfin snapshot runs near $334,000, up about 6%. In the towns: Munster's median sits near $385,000, up about 5.5%; Crown Point's latest city read near $315,000 is down about 2.5% year over year, yet its June figure ran near $329,821, up about 9.9%, which shows how much the measure and window matter in that town right now; Schererville holds near $350,000 on a three-month basis, up about 3%; Valparaiso's 46385 ZIP runs near $390,000, up about 1.3%, on a different measure than regional reports that frame a broader $280,000 to $340,000 range up about 7.2%; Portage's August median came in near $334,908 with about 254 active listings and days on market up to 66 from 42 a year earlier; Highland runs near $269,000, up about 2.7%; Dyer near $288,000, down less than 1%; St. John near $440,000, up about 5.2%; and Cedar Lake leads the appreciation list again near $338,000, up about 17.9%.
What this means for sellers
With the national supply cushion at its deepest since 2015 and local inventory growing in towns like Frankfort and Portage, your opening price is your most powerful tool. At a 6.95% rate, buyers feel the payment before they feel the house, so condition and presentation decide which homes get the weekend traffic and which sit. The same town can run hot on one street and slow on the next, which is exactly why a personalized pricing conversation beats a website's average.
What this means for buyers
This is close to the most buyer-friendly fall we have seen in several years in many of the communities I serve: more inventory, more realistic sellers, more negotiating room, and a few towns where prices have ticked down year over year, Tinley Park, Crown Point and Dyer among them. The trade-off is the rate, yet the math often surprises people who stop waiting and run it. Get pre-approved, know your reliable payment, and be ready to act, because well-priced homes in good condition still do not linger, and New Lenox and Cedar Lake prove that every week.
One more thing
I am licensed in both Illinois and Indiana, so I can compare the South Suburbs and Northwest Indiana in a single conversation, property taxes included. If you are weighing a move, sizing up your equity, or getting ready to list, I would love to run the numbers with you and build a plan that fits your timeline. Call me at (708) 252-1490 or schedule a call any time. You Can With Joanne!™