The Peoria area continues to be a hotbed for millennial home buyers. The overall number of properties sold last year was slightly less than in 2015, when real estate moved at a 7-year high.
Jana Heffron is the president of the Peoria Area Association of Realtors. She says compared to 200 other top performing cities, Peoria saw the highest increase in the number of Millennial purchases. A study by SmartAssets ranked Peoria in the top five percent for attracting millennial buyers:
“You can buy into a home in the lower price range. Anything $125,000 and below is kind of considered the lower price range. And when you look at that, being able to buy in, including taxes, insurance and everything it’s less money than if they were to go out and rent. So the affordability factor is huge!”
A few more than 5,450 homes sold in Peoria, Tazewell, Woodford and Stark Counties last year. The average price was in the $141,000 range.
Homes that sold spent an average of 83 days on the market last year. Millennials and baby boomers are expected to make up more than 60% of homebuyers in the region this year.