August 2026 Southeast Wisconsin Housing Market: County-by-County Numbers

Metro MLS released its August 2026 numbers, and unlike the statewide report, these break down county by county — which means we can look directly at the markets where our buyers and sellers actually live. Here’s what the data shows for Racine, Kenosha, Walworth, and Waukesha counties, and what it means if you’re buying or selling in Burlington, Waterford, Lake Geneva, Union Grove, or anywhere else in our service area.

The County-by-County Numbers

• Across the four-county Milwaukee metro area, active listings rose 11% year over year and pending sales jumped 21%, while closed sales slipped 4.6%. The median sales price reached $409,900, up 8.9% from August 2025 (average sales price $497,552, up 11.1%), with homes selling in an average of 19 days — unchanged from a year ago.
• Racine County: the median sale price rose 10.6% to $353,750, even as closed sales dipped 5.7%. New listings jumped 20.3%, and homes sold in an average of 20 days, matching last August.
• Kenosha County: the median climbed 12.9% year over year to $367,000, while closed sales fell 11.0%. New listings were up 15.4%, and homes averaged 21 days on the market.
• Walworth County: the median sale price held nearly flat, up just 1.0% to $425,000, while closed sales dipped 8.7% and new listings slipped 5.7%. Homes there took 38 days to sell on average — down sharply from 57 a year ago, but still the slowest pace among the four counties.
• Waukesha County: the median rose 11.5% to $546,500 as new listings climbed 6.6% and closed sales rose 4.8%, with homes selling in 21 days on average.

What This Means If You’re Buying

Prices climbed double digits again in Racine, Kenosha, and Waukesha counties in August, so if you’re shopping there, expect to compete on new listings and get pre-approved before you tour. The upside is that inventory is building in all three — new listings and active inventory are both up meaningfully year over year, so you’ll have more to choose from than a year ago even with prices still rising.

Walworth County remains the outlier — prices are essentially flat and closed sales dipped, though the average time to sell dropped sharply to 38 days. If Racine or Kenosha pricing is stretching your budget, it’s still worth widening the search toward Elkhorn, Delavan, or Lake Geneva, where sellers have historically had more incentive to negotiate.

What This Means If You’re Selling

If you’re in Racine, Kenosha, or Waukesha County, August was another strong month for pricing — double-digit gains across all three. But closed sales were down in Racine and Kenosha, a reminder that rising new-listing counts mean more competition on the shelf. Homes priced right from day one are still moving quickly; overpriced listings are the ones sitting while similar homes around them sell.

In Walworth County, closed sales and new listings both eased slightly, but days on market improved a lot — from 57 to 38 — which suggests well-priced homes are moving faster than they were last summer even if overall volume is down. Lean on strong presentation and realistic pricing there rather than expecting last year’s pace to repeat.

The Bigger Picture

Regionally, the stat that stands out is pending sales up 21% alongside active listings up 11% — demand is outpacing new supply even as inventory grows, which is why prices keep climbing despite closed sales ticking down. That pattern held in three of our four counties this month: Racine, Kenosha, and Waukesha all posted double-digit price gains, while Walworth continues to move at its own, more negotiable pace. For most of our service area, expect September to look a lot like August — competitive on price, with a bit more to choose from than last year.

Want this broken down for your specific situation? Contact us and we’ll walk through what these numbers mean for your neighborhood, your budget, and your timeline.

Source: Metro MLS, August 2026 Monthly Local Market Reports.