Lake, Porter housing sales show decrease for October 2015

The median selling price in Lake County held steady, with a .1 percent increase, while it dropped by 4.8 percent in Porter County.

"What happened locally in October, happened nationally as well," said Peter Novak, chief executive officer of the Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors.

"There's nothing to panic about," he added, noting that the number of houses sold and the amount for which they sold are up so far this year over the same 10-month period last year in both Lake and Porter counties.

The monthly report revealed that 475 houses were sold in Lake County last month at a median price of $135,000, compared to 525 houses sold at a median price of $134,900 the previous October.

In Porter County, 202 houses were sold last month at a median price of $171,250, compared to 190 houses at a median price of $179,950 in October 2014.

Looking at year-to-date figures, Lake County saw a 6.3 percent increase in the number of houses sold from Jan. 1 to Oct. 31, with 4,864 sold in that period this year compared to 4,574 last year. There was a 5.3 percent hike in the median price. The median price this year is $138,000, compared to $131,000 in the first 10 months of last year.

Porter has chalked up a 9 percent hike in units sold so far this year, 1,908 compared to 1,750 this time last year, and a 1.5 percent increase in median price, $172,500 compared to $170,000.

Novak said November and December numbers may be skewed due to a change in law regarding closing settlements.

"If there are any mistakes it could delay the closings," Novak said.

"It won't mean that there will be fewer people buying homes in those months," he said.

Looking to the future, Novak said signs are still looking positive for the housing market going into 2016.

"Most consumers are feeling pretty good about the housing market," he said.