With 47 state parks to visit, over 84,000 miles of river for coastal home lovers, 15,000 water lakes for water lovers, 13 state forests, 76 state wildlife to explore, and with one of the lowest crime rates nationwide Wisconsin took its place among the 100 best places to live in 2023.
But right now in 2023 homebuyers might think twice and take a much better preparation before moving to their new home in Wisconsin. There’s a major shift in the real estate market in the region. Based on the current scenario, let’s explore the Wisconsin housing market and find out the essential moving guide.
The hot housing market of Wisconsin
Home prices in Wisconsin are already up by 9.4% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the last year and are likely to increase more. It wouldn’t be wrong to say in an inflated scenario when the US housing market is steadily cooling down from the last quarter of 2022, Wisconsin is still on the rise and hot.
For new homebuyers, the median home price right now is $264,000 with February sales of 12,365 homes which are down 20.6% year over year and the new recently listed homes are 3,498. Overall the number of homes sold dropped by 13.8% this year already.
(Source: https://www.redfin.com/state/Wisconsin/housing-market)
For better insights for the new homebuyers who are planning to move to Wisconsin, in home sales prices these metro areas are considered to be the fastest-growing:
- Fond du Lac (43.9%)
- Franklin (36.8%)
- Mount Pleasant (21.8%)
- Janesville (20.5%)
- La Crosse (18.3%)
- West Allis (16.8%)
- Waukesha (15.9%)
- Kenosha (14.1%)
- Appleton (13.9%)
- Menomonee Falls (8.7%)
But if you are looking to land somewhere peaceful for the suburban feel or live the rest of your retired life in a euphoric beauty, you can always choose the areas. The fastest-growing rural areas of Wisconsin are:
- Oregon, located in Dane County (44.8%)
- New Glarus, located in Green County (36.6%)
- Genoa City, located in Walworth County (32.8%)
- Pewaukee, located in Waukesha County (25.3%)
- Butler, Located in Waukesha County (21.1%)
- Thiensville, located in Ozaukee County (18.1%)
- Cross Plains, located in Dane County (17.1%)
- Williams Bay, located in Walworth County (13.8%)
- Woodland Dr, located in Waunakee County (13.4%)
- Wales, located in Waukesha County (7.5%)
- Darien, located in Walworth County (5.0%)
Things to know before buying a house in Wisconsin
Before anyone decides to move to Wisconsin, it’s better to be enlighted on these trends and facts:
Potential housing market frenzy
An apparent housing market bubble is around the prediction list of Wisconsin.
Already the bubble-like projection is in initial form around the region which is due to the inflated market condition, overheating for the market, low inventory (only 3 months of demand available right now), and high mortgage rates.
Real estate market decline
The prediction is the real estate market of Wisconsin will slow down but a crash is almost expected. Even though it might not happen sooner due to the instability of meeting the demand with enough supply.
Housing Inventory: Active Listing Count in Wisconsin
(Source: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/ACTLISCOUWI)
Small declines in employment
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue projects that employment will decline 0.4% statewide, with a range of 4.6% this year.
Wisconsin’s unemployment rate was 1.6% lower as of October 2022 than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic’s onset in February 2020, with 48,800 positions remaining vacant. There will be fewer regular pay raises as well.
Single-family homes are in high demand
The demand for single-family units is skyrocketing in Wisconsin. The top drivers of the demand are the young millennials. Gen Zs are also in the race same as them for single-family houses.
Finding Your New Home: The Essential Moving Guide to Wisconsin
Right now it’s a good time to move home and sort of trending. Although exhilarating, it may also be stressful because there always seems to be something you need to prepare for. To make the transition much easier, we’re going to examine and guide you through it today with some key checklists.
1. Work with a trusted agent around the area
If you are moving from outside of Wisconsin, you definitely need to work with a trusted agent from the bottom of the home-finding process to move.
Realtors will be your most important ally and trusted advisor during the process. They will also help you make bids, negotiate contracts, choose the appropriate home, research markets, and your neighborhood, and manage the closing process. Also, they could recommend other service providers to help you buy your Wisconsin home, such as inspectors and title companies.
They will even help you set up the budget in the current market climate after the housing market research is done.
2. Research local markets and neighborhoods together
Team up with your new agent and go for some house-hunting in Wisconsin. Researching and knowing your next housing market area is one of the initial aspects of moving.
Aside from mortgage rates, locations, and other factors– housing inventory is one of the major features to look out for in thorough research. High inventory means a slow market which matters when you plan on resale and low inventory means the homes around the region sell faster.
| Season | Monthly new listings |
| Spring | 8,860 |
| Summer | 8,860 |
| Fall | 8,860 |
| Winter | 8,860 |
Housing inventory scenario by season in Wisconsin
(Source: https://listwithclever.com/real-estate-blog/8-steps-to-buying-a-house-in-wisconsin/#find-an-agent)
3. Get pre-approved before making an offer
A mortgage preapproval letter is an offer to lend you money up to a particular amount to purchase a property.
It shows home sellers that you are a serious buyer with the means to make an offer on a property. Before letting you see their home in Wisconsin’s hot real estate market, the majority of sellers would require pre-approval.
4. Set the moving timeframe and unpacking plan
You can not just randomly take all your things and move to a new place. You have a job to handle and your family needs preparation. So best to set a timeframe for preparing and moving– Make a list of anything else you want to prepare, then unpack in priority order.
Friday is considered the best time to move as you’ll have the whole weekend remaining to finish the job and unpack.
5. Think long-term to grow into your new home in Wisconsin
Learn how a new home in Wisconsin will improve your life in more detail, think long-term. Do you plan to have kids? Do you desire to own several animals or pets? Any plan to establish a garden, thinking about getting a home with lots of lands?
Consider the long-term goals you most want to achieve and how a change of location can help you to do so before moving on.
Looking for a new place to live and moving there is a huge step forward. It can be hasty and intimidating to pick a place and move, whether it’s in Wisconsin or elsewhere, but with the correct preparation, the process can go much more simply.
We hope you found this blog post on Finding Your New Home: The Essential Moving Guide to Wisconsin useful. Be sure to check out our post on Brilliant Tips to Find Your Perfect Home for more great tips!
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