Published October 28, 2026 in Market Update

Homes That Waited Past 30 Days Sold for Less

By Maureen Moran

Real estate, Sept .30. v3

Let me take a moment to walk through what I found in the most recent sales data across Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Bucktown, Gold Coast, Old Town, and Wicker Park. I'm Maureen, and I work these neighborhoods every day. I pulled every listing through October 27, 2026, and one pattern came through clearly: how long a home sat on the market had a direct effect on what it sold for.

The typical home sold in 8 days and got every dollar of what it first asked. That is the market at its best. But not every home moved that fast, and the ones that didn't tell a different story.

The longer a home waited, the less it sold for

Homes that found a buyer within the first month sold for a middle price of $630,000. They typically sold in 6 days. They got 100% of what they first asked. That is a clean result.

Homes that took into the second month, with a typical 45 days on the market, sold for a middle price of $429,000. They got 96.1% of what they first asked. That gap from asking price adds up. The week-by-week numbers show the same pattern earlier. Homes that sold in week 1 got 101.8% of their first asking price. Homes that sold in week 4 got 97%.

The difference between selling in the first month and the second is not just time. It is money. Homes that took into month 3 got 95.5% of their first asking price, the lowest of any group.

Who this affects and who can set it aside

If your home is priced in the $500,000 to $750,000 range, this market has been strong for you. Homes in that range sold in a typical 7 days and got 100% of their first asking price. The $750,000 to $1.15 million range did the same: 6 days, 100% of the first ask. Those sellers can feel good about where things stand.

The picture is different under $400,000. Just 51.4% of homes in that range sold at or above their asking price. That is the lowest share of any price group, and it is 15 percentage points below the $600,000 to $950,000 range, where 66.7% of homes hit or beat their ask. If you are in that lower range, price is doing more work than you might expect.

Homes that took longer to sell were not spread evenly across the market. The data does not say why any one home sat longer. What it does say is that the ones that did paid a real cost in the final number.

What sellers and buyers should do with this

If you are selling, the first price you set matters more than any adjustment you make later. Homes that needed a price drop before finding a buyer gave up ground they did not get back. In September alone, 300 homes went under contract against only 176 new listings. That is 0.6 new listings for every new contract. Demand is there. The homes that captured it were priced to move from day one.

If you are buying, a home that has been sitting for 30 days or more is worth a closer look. The data shows those sellers accepted 96.1% of their first asking price at the typical sale. That is real room to work with. The 30-year fixed rate averaged 6.65% the week of August 20, 2026, per Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, so running the numbers on a slightly lower price matters. A home at 96.1% of ask versus 101.8% of ask is a meaningful difference at today's rates.