April 2025 Home Sales Report
Home closings down sharply as prices rise in April
Date: May 22, 2025
April 2025 at a glance
- For a second straight month, home sales fell by a substantial margin while prices increased. Existing home sales slid 10.4% when compared to April 2024, and the median price increased 7.3% to $322,000 over that same 12-month period.
- The year-to-date sales were down just 3.5% compared to the first four months of 2024, due to solid growth in January and February of this year. Home sale prices rose 8.8% when compared to the first four months of 2024. This pushed the median sale price to $310,000.
- Statewide inventories improved 5.9% to 3.6 months of available supply in April, but they remained well below the six-month benchmark of supply that signals a balanced market. To reach what is considered a balanced market, the state would need April total listings to increase 67% from current levels.
- April supply levels were static at 3.2 months of supply for larger metropolitan counties. However, they improved 8.6% to 3.8 months in micropolitan counties that contain smaller cities and towns, and they were up 13.6% to five months of available supply in rural counties.
- The Wisconsin Housing Affordability Index measures the percentage of the median-priced home that a representative buyer with median family income qualifies to purchase, assuming 20% down and the unpaid balance financed with a 30-year fixed mortgage at current rates. Affordability was essentially unchanged, rising just 0.8% over the last 12 months. This is because the 7.6% increase in median family income and quarter-point improvement in mortgage rates more than offset the 7.3% increase in the median price.
Additional analysis
Opportunities in Less-urban Areas
"It’s still a strong seller’s market statewide, but we are seeing signs of improvement in our smaller communities as well as in rural parts of the state. Potential buyers may want to consider expanding their home search into areas where supply is growing to increase their likelihood of success."
Chris DeVincentis, 2025 Chair of the Board of Directors, Wisconsin REALTORS® Association
Putting Declining Sales into Perspective
"Sales dropped 10.4% over the last 12 months, but we need to remember that April of last year was a very strong month for sales. In fact, closings spiked 27.7% in April 2024 compared to April 2023. This was the strongest annual growth seen since late 2020. April 2025 sales were 14% higher than they were two years ago in April 2023, which is a solid month for home sales."
Tom Larson, President & CEO, Wisconsin REALTORS® Association
Tariff Uncertainty and Inflation
"In its most recent meeting, the Fed left the federal funds rate unchanged with Fed Chairman Jerome Powell indicating that the risk of higher inflation as well as higher unemployment increased since March. Indeed, the initial estimates of first quarter real GDP growth were slightly negative, falling 0.3%. However, since that meeting, the administration announced promising trade negotiations with China, which was followed by better-than-expected April inflation data. Hopefully the threat of tariff wars is subsiding, which will help keep inflation in check."
Dave Clark, Professor Emeritus of Economics and WRA Consultant