As I’m sure you’ve seen in newspapers and on TV, the national real estate market is falling in 2006. The national average of home sales is down, so people always ask me, “How is the Northwest Indiana real estate market doing?” It’s an easy answer… great!

It’s important to remember that real estate is a local market driven by local conditions. You also need to remember that if the national AVERAGE is down, that means that some areas must still be doing well… that includes Northwest Indiana.

More homes will be sold in Northwest Indiana this year than ever before. And in most communities, sellers are getting more for their home than in 2004 and 2005. Here is a look at how some major Northwest Indiana communites are doing.

KEY: HS: Homes Sold; DOM: Days on the Market; ASP: Average Sales Price

Community 2004 HS 2004 DOM 2004 ASP 2005 HS 2005 DOM 2005 ASP 2006 HS 2006 DOM 2006 ASP

Hammond* 420 73 $79,874 449 72 $84,479 528 70 $81,124

Griffith 123 63 $126,171 153 60 $131,610 157 65 $132,521

Highland 167 57 $142,966 226 63 $148,435 247 70 $142,023

Munster 222 78 $230,476 215 79 $232,871 230 74 $238,615

Dyer 143 67 $204,581 185 73 $206,951 179 74 $230,617