THU AM News: May home sales dip 2.8%, though year-to-date sales improved; WARF touting less invasive sensor as top licensing prospect

June 18, 2026

— Wisconsin home sales fell 2.8% over the year in May amid rising prices and limited housing supply, though year-to-date sales are still above the same point last year.

The Wisconsin Realtors Association’s latest report, released this morning, shows 6,553 homes were sold in the state last month. That’s down from 6,745 in May 2025.

But at the same time, year-to-date home sales increased 2.6% to 24,432, compared to 23,807 in the first five months of 2025.

“This is impressive given the tight inventories and persistently high mortgage rates, and we hope to see moderating mortgage rates and inventory improvements that lead to healthy sales performance this summer,” WRA Board Chair Amy Curler said in a statement on the results.

The state’s housing supply was unchanged over the year at 4.1 months, remaining well below the six-month benchmark WRA considers a “balanced” existing home market.

WRA President and CEO Tom Larson says this constrained market is having a big impact on first-time home buyers, pointing to challenges for millennials in particular.

“Although the homes listed at the top of the price distribution show plenty of inventory, very few first-time buyers are buying homes at or above $500,000,” he said in the report. “It’s the homes listed under $350,000 that are primary targets for new buyers, and these homes are unfortunately in very short supply.”

Homes listed for between $125,000 and $350,000 had less than 3.4 months of supply available in May, making up about 40% of all listings in the state. For homes listed for between $350,000 and $500,000 — making up a fourth of all listings — supply levels were higher at 4.2 months.

Only homes listed for $500,000 and higher were at the balanced level of six months, making up about 30% of all listings.

Meanwhile, the state’s median home price increased 6.8% over the year, rising from $330,000 in May 2025 to $352,500 last month.

See the report.

— UW-Madison researchers have invented a new sensor for measuring intracranial pressure, offering a less invasive alternative for assessing certain birth defects and other medical conditions.

WARF is touting the invention as a top licensing prospect in its healthcare portfolio of university research. It was created by a team of scientists including Prof. Daniel Cho, who’s also the co-founder and CEO of a Madison startup called CranioSure that won the 2024 Governor’s Business Plan Contest.

The sensor device is meant to improve upon the current approach to measuring intracranial pressure. This is a key metric for assessing risk for head trauma, the build-up of cerebrospinal fluid known as hydrocephalus and craniosynostosis, a birth defect where the bones of the skull join together too early.

But current methods for assessing intracranial pressure inside the skull are “highly invasive,” according to details provided by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation. They involve implanting a pressure sensor through small holes made in the dura mater — the membrane around the brain and spinal cord — and observing the patient in the intensive care unit.

WARF notes the anesthesia required for this method can lower intracranial pressure and lead to inaccurate measurements, in addition to a “high risk” of complications from the procedure such as an infection.

To avoid these issues, the researchers created a small device that can be implanted during any neurosurgery for long-term monitoring of intracranial pressure. It’s implanted outside the dura mater, enabling the measurement of pressure between this membrane and the skull that correlates to intracranial pressure. This measurement can be done non-invasively with an X-ray.

“An accurate, non-invasive ICP pressure sensor is needed to directly monitor elevated ICP in children diagnosed with craniosynostosis during their developmental stages to minimize further complications,” authors wrote.

Craniosynostosis can lead to abnormal head shape in those affected as well as hindering brain growth, and is often treated with surgery to enable normal development. Once the prematurely fused bones are disconnected through the surgery, regular monitoring is done for decades to ensure proper skull development.

In the patent for the device, the researchers noted current methods for assessing that development — including measuring symptoms, specialized scans and more — have low sensitivity.

“If undetected, inhibited brain growth can cause developmental delays or cognitive disfunction, therefore timely intervention is desired,” they wrote.

Cho’s company, CranioSure, has a software application for assessing infant head shapes to detect their risk of craniosynostosis, supporting earlier interventions.

See the tech overview.

See the patent.

— Personal nutrition company GenoPalate is touting new peer-reviewed research showing its genetics-based profiles can lead to better health outcomes.

The Milwaukee firm this week announced results from the research published in the scientific journal BMC Nutrition, which focused on 874 GenoPalate members who had gotten a personalized nutrition report from the company for at least one year.

The study found those who reported changing their behaviors after getting the genetic nutrition insights were much more likely to report improved health, compared to those who had no behavior changes. An average of 57% of those reporting behavior changes saw health improvement, while just 12% of those who didn’t change their behaviors improved.

In addition, “modest” weight changes seen among participants were still “significantly different” over the study period, authors wrote. Those who changed their behaviors had an average weight loss of 0.5%, while those who didn’t change saw an average weight gain of 1.5%, the study found.

Hector Guillen, the company’s chief scientific officer and corresponding author of the study, says genetics should be used as a “practical tool” to help people better understand their own biology and make informed choices about their nutrition and other health behaviors.

“This study reinforces what we have believed from the beginning: personalized nutrition is most effective when it empowers the users to identify actions relevant to their lives,” he said in a statement.

GenoPalate says it’s working to expand its nutrition platform beyond genetic analysis, wrapping in blood biomarkers, dietary habits and other lifestyle information to provide more personalized recommendations for its users.

Yi Sherry Zhang, the company’s founder and an executive at California’s Buck Institute for Research on Aging, says the study offers validation for the notion that biological insights can result in real behavioral changes.

“Ultimately, health outcomes improve not because someone learns something about their biology, but because that knowledge empowers meaningful action,” she said.

See the study.

See the release.

— Wisconsin’s latest allocation plan for certain WHEDA tax credits includes higher award limits, state officials announced.

Gov. Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority this week rolled out the final 2027-28 Qualified Allocation Plan, which establishes the framework for administering tax credits to finance low- to moderate-income housing in the state.

Under the new plan, WHEDA says the maximum amount of 9% federal tax credit it will allocate to any project is $1.4 million, while the maximum state credit is also set at $1.4 million. The guv’s office says boosting the award limits aims to “improve the viability of transactions” in light of market constraints.

In the prior plan document, covering 2025-26, WHEDA said the maximum amount of 9% credit allocated to any project in the general, small urban or rural set-asides was $1.3 million, while the most state credit allocated to any project in all set-asides was $1.2 million.

The new plan also redefines set-side categories, introduces county caps on awards and adjusts underwriting to “promote distribution of resources” statewide, the guv’s office says. Plus, it includes an updated design and scoring criteria for projects, aimed at improving long-term financial viability and meeting the state’s housing needs.

Evers says the updated plan “reflects our evolving understanding of Wisconsin’s dynamic housing, demographic, and development climate to ensure every Wisconsinite has the affordable housing they need and deserve.”

During the last QAP period covering 2025-26, WHEDA awarded $84.4 million in federal and state tax credits for about 3,900 affordable housing units, supporting projects in 40 communities.

See the release.

See the 2027-28 plan document.

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