Published October 4, 2026 in Market Update

Lake County sales rose even as inventory stayed nearly flat

By Alison Aviles

Real estate, Lake County

Here is the one fact that changes what you should do right now. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 2,623 homes sold across Lake County in the three months ending July 31, 2026, up 4.3% from the same period a year before. At the same time, homes for sale came in at 2,017, down 0.9%. More buyers are closing deals. The shelf is not growing. That means how you price and prepare your home still matters a great deal.

Sales rising while inventory barely moves tells a clear story. Buyers are showing up and deals are getting done. New listings from the Real Estate Data Aggregator rose 2.8% county-wide, but that fresh supply was absorbed quickly. Pending sales hit 2,659, up 2% from a year before. Demand is real and steady.

What the wider market is doing

Redfin reported that Chicago home prices rose 9.2% year over year in August. That is a strong backdrop for Lake County sellers. The Federal Housing Finance Agency put U.S. home prices up 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026. So the Chicago area is outpacing the national number by a wide margin.

Rates are a real headwind right now. Realtor.com reported mortgage rates topped 7% for the first time since January 2025. CNBC put the average 30-year fixed rate for conforming loans at 7.30% as of September 30, 2026. Buyers are absorbing that cost and still closing. That says something about how much people want to be in this market.

How each ZIP code stacked up

The county number is the headline, but every ZIP tells its own story. Some moved fast. Some took longer. Prices rose in most areas and dipped in a few.

Where prices moved the most

ZIP 60044 saw the biggest price gain. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median sale price there at $824,000, up 26.2% from a year before. ZIP 60030 rose 17.7% to $382,600. ZIP 60035 climbed 12.3% to $900,000.

Not every ZIP moved up. ZIP 60084 saw the median fall 9.5% to $373,113. ZIP 60069 dropped 8.8% to $724,500. ZIP 60089 slipped 8.2% to $422,500. A dip in one ZIP does not mean the whole county is soft. It means the mix of homes that sold shifted.

How fast homes are selling

Speed varied a lot by ZIP. The Real Estate Data Aggregator showed ZIP 60035 at a median of 39 days on market, 7 days shorter than a year before. ZIP 60015 came in at 41 days. ZIP 60069 took the longest at 57 days, up 9 days from last year.

Above-list sales: who is winning on price

The share of homes selling above list price tells you how much competition buyers are facing. In ZIP 60030, the Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 57.6% of homes selling above list, up 7.6 points from a year before. ZIP 60035 hit 58.5%, up 12 points. ZIP 60099 reached 62%, up 16.2 points.

A few ZIPs cooled on this measure. ZIP 60020 fell 9 points to 32.4%. ZIP 60044 dropped 9.2 points to 38.6%. Buyers in those areas had a bit more room to breathe.

Sale-to-list ratio: are sellers getting their price?

Even in ZIPs where fewer homes beat list price, sellers are still getting close to asking. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put ZIP 60035 at 103.9% sale-to-list, the highest in the county. ZIP 60002 came in at 101.4%. Only ZIP 60084 and ZIP 60020 dipped below 100%, at 99.7% and 99.1% respectively. Those are small gaps, not big discounts.

Supply by ZIP: where buyers have more choices

Months of supply shows how long the current inventory would last at the current sales pace. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put ZIP 60085 at 3.5 months, the highest in the county. ZIP 60002 came in at 3.3 months. ZIP 60015 and ZIP 60031 were the tightest at 1.6 months each.

Homes going under contract fast

The share of homes that went under contract within two weeks of listing shows buyer urgency. ZIP 60073 led the county at 66.7%, up 0.7 points from a year before, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. ZIP 60030 came in at 65.7%, up 1.9 points. ZIP 60035 was at 63.9%.

ZIP 60069 was the slowest at 43.1%, down 12.2 points from last year. ZIP 60085 slipped 17 points to 59%. A drop in that share does not mean homes are not selling. It means buyers are taking a little more time.

One more thing worth knowing. Rates are not helping buyers right now. Realtor.com reported mortgage rates topped 7% for the first time since January 2025. CNBC put the 30-year fixed conforming rate at 7.30% as of September 30, 2026. Buyers are absorbing that and still closing. That is a real signal about demand in this county.

The county number is a useful starting point. One street can read very differently from the whole ZIP code. A home's condition, price point and timing all shape the result. If you want to know what the numbers look like for your specific address, I am happy to walk you through it.