Madison, Wis. — The Wisconsin REALTORS® Association released its July 2026 Real Estate Report today, showing Wisconsin’s housing market continued to rise in both home sales and prices for the second consecutive month, reflecting continued buyer demand despite affordability challenges and a still-constrained supply of homes.
Existing home sales increased 8.1% in July compared to July 2025, while the statewide median home price rose 6.8% over the same period to $360,000. Regionally, year-to-date home sales and prices increased in every region of the state relative to the same time frame last year.
While inventory remains below the level associated with a balanced market, the number of homes coming onto the market continues to improve. Supply held steady at 4.2 months in July, essentially unchanged from a year ago but still below the six-month benchmark for a balanced existing home market. New listings rose 1.3% over the past year, while total active listings increased 1.6%, reflecting gradual but steady improvement in available options for buyers.
Even with mortgage rates modestly lower than a year ago, housing affordability continued to decline. Wisconsin’s Affordability Index fell 4.1% over the past 12 months as rising home prices – up 6.8% year-over-year – more than offset slight rate improvements and only modest gains in median family income.
Affordability challenges continue to weigh most heavily on first-time homebuyers, who face a shrinking supply of lower-priced homes. Over the past five years, the share of homes listed for less than $350,000 declined from 68.9% in June 2021 to 46.2% in June 2026.
Amy Curler, 2026 Chair of the Board of Directors, Wisconsin REALTORS® Association, stated, “So far, we’ve seen a solid housing market this summer as statewide home sales are up nearly 8% compared to June 2025 and July 2025. This is the strongest first two months of peak summer sales since 2022 when mortgage rates began increasing.”
Tom Larson, President & CEO, Wisconsin REALTORS® Association, highlighted that, “The state has technically been in a seller’s market for the past nine years, and strong price pressure and relatively high mortgage rates have severely eroded affordability. Still, demand remains quite strong, especially among millennials, who have had to adjust to the new normal of mortgage rates in the 6% to 7% range. While challenging for first-time buyers, this should continue to drive growth in sales over the remainder of the year.”
Dave Clark, Professor Emeritus of Economics and Wisconsin REALTORS® Association Consultant, noted, “New Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh has signaled an ongoing commitment to the 2% target rate for core inflation and, under his direction thus far, the Fed has kept the short-term Federal Funds Rate unchanged. Getting core inflation closer to this target is important because it will lower inflationary expectations, which are a key driver of mortgage rates.”
REPORT HIGHLIGHTS:
- Existing home sales rose 8.1% year over year in July, while the median home price increased 6.8% to $360,000.
- Year-to-date sales increased 4.9% compared to the first seven months of 2025, with the median price up 6.2% to $345,000.
- Inventory remains constrained at 4.2 months statewide, down slightly from 4.3 months last July.
- New listings rose 1.3%, and total listings increased 1.6% year over year.
- The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.54%, down 18 basis points from last year.
- The market share of homes listed under $350,000 continued to decline, falling from 68.9% in June 2021 to 46.2% in June 2026.
