The number of North Shore homes sales in the 3rd quarter of 2026 was down less than 1% as compared to the 3rd quarter of 2024. Market time was down 9% and median prices saw a significant 9% increase. Overall, it was another strong quarter for North Shore home sellers. While the number of sales was down slightly, that was due to the very small inventory. Average market time was 30 days which is well below a typical market time of approximately 100 days.
Here are the 3rd Quarter Statistics:
| Number of Homes Sales | Average Market Time | |||||||
| 3rd Q 25 | 3rd Q 26 | 3rd Q 25 | 3rd Q 26 | |||||
| Wilmette | 94 | 84 | 29 | 26 | ||||
| Evanston | 99 | 94 | 25 | 21 | ||||
| Winnetka | 54 | 51 | 42 | 30 | ||||
| Glenview | 127 | 117 | 27 | 23 | ||||
| North Shore | 1027 | 1025 | 33 | 30 | ||||
| Average Home Price (in thousands) | Median Home Price (in thousands) | |||||||
| 3rd Q 25 | 3rd Q 26 | % Change | 3rd Q 25 | 3rd Q 26 | % Change | |||
| Wilmette | 1392 | 1529 | 10% | 1223 | 1485 | 21% | ||
| Evanston | 928 | 1110 | 20% | 806 | 953 | 18% | ||
| Winnetka | 2940 | 2524 | -14% | 1880 | 2400 | 28% | ||
| Glenview | 1006 | 1131 | 12% | 870 | 976 | 12% | ||
| North Shore | 1138 | 1219 | 7% | 875 | 950 | 9% | ||
The above statistics are for detached single family homes and were compiled from data collected by the Multiple Listing Service (Midwest Real Estate Data LLC), and may not include all home sales
Prices: Prices in the 3rd quarter were up substantially when compared to last year at this time. Last year prices had gone up a lot from the prior year and this year the gains continued. As is typical when pulling just one quarter of sales, the statistical price changes in individual suburbs varied. Wilmette’s median price went up 21% while Winnetka’s average price went down 14%. Neither of those numbers is what happened in reality—one is too high, and one is too low. This once again proves that the sample size of one suburb for one quarter is too small to get a reliable number. The North Shore’s median price increase of 9%, which is a big gain, is closer to what actually happened in all of these suburbs.
Inventory: Inventory last year had decreased to historic lows. This year, it has decreased even further. Wilmette has 25 single-family detached homes on the market that are not under contract. Last year at this time there were 32 active homes in Wilmette. Evanston has 44 active homes currently, and last year it had 49 at this time. Winnetka has just 13 active homes, last year there were 28. Glenview also has had a big inventory decrease going from 79 to 57 homes. The North Shore as a whole has had a decrease, going from 614 to 576. Normally there would be between 1500 and 2000 homes on the market at this time.
Interest Rates: Interest Rates have been rising in the last few weeks and are currently the highest they have been in several years at around 7.6% for a conforming 30-year mortgage. Last year at this time they were around 6%. During the spring and summer this year when the market was very hot and favorable to sellers interest rates were in the mid 6’s so there has been a significant increase in rates this fall and it does appear that the market has slowed down recently. The number of homes going under contract in the 3rd quarter was 22% less than in the 2nd quarter.
The highest sale price in the 3rd quarter was $17,500,000 for a home on Sheridan Road in Glencoe. This home took quite a while to sell as it had 531 days of market time. It has a pool and pool house, tennis court, theater, guest house, 7 car garage, and 19 bathrooms.
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