Mitir Patel/Insights/August 31, 2026
Where Chicago buying stands: rates flat, prices up, room on stale listings
Where Chicago buying stands this week.
Mortgage rates have gone nowhere all summer — 6.66% on a 30-year loan as of August 27, and slightly higher than a year ago. If you've been waiting for rates to fall before you shop, that wait hasn't paid off, and I can't tell you when it will.
Meanwhile Cook County prices rose 8.6% over the past year. Waiting cost money.
What doesn't make headlines: the typical Cook County home still took 49 days to sell in July, and slightly under half sold above asking — so slightly more than half didn't.
Updated homes in popular neighborhoods still move fast. Homes that need work, or have sat a few weeks, are where you have room to negotiate.
Tough market, not an impossible one. If you're weighing a move, ask me anything — no pressure.
Where the numbers come from
- 30-year fixed mortgage rate — 6.66% (prior week 6.65%; 6.56% a year ago) (as of Aug 27, 2026) · Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey
- "Gone nowhere all summer" — Aug 6: 6.69% · Aug 13: 6.67% · Aug 20: 6.65% · Aug 27: 6.66% (as of Aug 6–27, 2026) · Freddie Mac PMMS weekly releases
- Cook County median sale price, +8.6% YoY — $396,338 (as of July 2026) · Redfin
- Cook County median days on market — 49 days (down 2 days YoY) (as of July 2026) · Redfin
- Cook County share selling above list — 48.6% (up 4.2 points YoY) (as of July 2026) · Redfin
Thinking about buying or selling in Chicago?
These notes are the plain-language version of what I watch every week. If you want it applied to your own budget, your block, or your building, send a note — no pressure and no pitch.
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