Madison, Wisconsin Housing Market
Madison is an extreme seller's market. As of the July 2026 snapshot, the median home sold for $460,000, went under contract in about 7 days, and there was just 1.60 months of supply — well below the 5-to-6-month range of a balanced market. Here's what June's numbers mean if you're buying or selling.
June 2026 Madison Snapshot
Bottom line: Madison is an extreme seller's market. Prices are up across the board, homes are still selling in about a week, and inventory sits at just 1.60 months — but average offers over asking have eased slightly, so it's competitive without being chaotic.
Data source: South Central Wisconsin MLS (SCWMLS). Snapshot taken July 1, 2026, reflecting June 2026 closings for the City of Madison. Data deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
Should I Buy a Home in Madison Right Now?
Yes — if you're ready, but go in prepared to move quickly. Madison's 1.60 months of supply means desirable, well-priced homes don't sit. In June, the median home went under contract in 7 days and buyers paid an average of 1.55% over asking. The good news: that over-asking premium has come down from a year ago, so you're competing, but not always in the double-digit-over-list wars of the peak. Get fully pre-approved, know your top number, and be ready to write a strong, clean offer fast.
Where you shop matters. Homes under $300,000 are the tightest, most competitive part of the market (supply as low as 1.30 months), so buyers in that range face the most competition. If your budget stretches higher, the $700,000-plus bands and especially the $1M-plus segment (4.35 months of supply) give you more selection and more room to negotiate.
Start with active listings and know your loan options: browse Madison homes for sale, review the loan programs available to Madison buyers, and if you've served, the VA loan guide can be a real edge in a competitive offer.
Is Now a Good Time to Sell a Home in Madison?
It's an excellent time to sell. Madison sellers hold the leverage: 1.60 months of supply, a 7-day median time to contract, and a median price up 7.0% year over year to $460,000. Buyers are active and competing, so a home that's priced right and shows well can attract multiple offers within days.
That said, the market rewards accuracy, not wishful pricing. Average offers over asking eased to 1.55%, and the average home still took 19 days when you include the ones that don't fly off the shelf. Homes that are overpriced or need work sit longer and invite negotiation. Price to the current comps, prep the home, and you're in a strong position.
See exactly where your home lands: get a free, no-obligation home valuation, then let's talk strategy.
John's Take: What I'm Seeing on the Ground
The headline is simple: Madison is still very much a seller's market, but it's a healthier one than a year or two ago. Buyers are showing up, but they're not throwing caution to the wind. That 1.55% average over asking tells the story — offers are still landing above list, just not by the eye-watering margins we saw at the peak. That's actually good news for everyone. It means deals are getting done at prices that appraise and buyers who lost out in past bidding wars are finally winning homes.
What I'm watching closely is the split by price point. Anything clean and under $400,000 is a feeding frenzy — that $300K-to-$400K band is the tightest in the whole city at 1.30 months of supply, and those homes are gone in days with multiple offers. Move up to $700,000-plus and the pace relaxes noticeably. If you're a move-up buyer, this is your window: sell into the frenzy at the low end and buy into the calmer, better-selection upper end.
The other thing worth saying: year-to-date sales are down about 2%, but don't read that as a cooling market. That's a supply story, not a demand story. There simply aren't enough homes coming to market — new listings in June were down 4.3% year over year. Prices keep climbing because demand keeps outrunning supply. If you've been thinking about selling, the shortage of competition right now is exactly why this is a strong moment to list.
Are Home Prices Going Up or Down in Madison?
Up. The June median sale price was $460,000, a 7.0% increase over June last year. Year to date, the median is $440,000, up 3.5%. Average price per square foot climbed to $287, a 3.6% annual gain, and the average sale price rose 10.2% to $526,471. Every core pricing measure is higher than a year ago.
The one number that fell — year-to-date sales volume, down 1.5% in dollars and 2.1% in transactions — reflects fewer homes changing hands, not falling prices. With inventory this tight, the constraint is supply, not buyer appetite.
How Long Does It Take to Sell a House in Madison?
About a week for the typical home. The median days on market in June was 7, unchanged from a year ago. The average was 19 days, which is pulled up by higher-priced and harder-to-move listings. In practice, a well-priced, move-in-ready Madison home commonly goes under contract within its first weekend on the market.
Can Buyers Negotiate in Madison?
Some, and more than a year ago — but it depends on price point. Citywide, homes sold for an average of 1.55% over asking in June, down about half a point from last year, which means the frenzy has cooled slightly and there's a bit more room to negotiate terms. In the higher price bands — particularly above $700,000, and the $1M-plus segment with 4.35 months of supply — buyers have real leverage on price, contingencies, and timelines. In the hyper-competitive sub-$400,000 range, expect to compete and lead with your strongest offer.
Should I Wait for Interest Rates to Drop in Madison?
Waiting is a real gamble in a market this tight. I won't predict where rates go — nobody can. But here's the tradeoff: Madison already has only 1.60 months of supply. If rates drop, the buyers currently sitting on the sidelines all come back at once and compete for the same short list of homes. That pushes prices up and revives over-asking bidding — often erasing any savings from the lower rate.
The strategy many Madison buyers use is to buy now while competition is a little calmer, then refinance later if rates improve. You can always change your rate down the road; you can't go back and buy at today's price. If you're a veteran or active military, the VA loan program can lower your cost of entry considerably.
What's Changed Over the Last Year?
Median Price
Annual median sale price (2026 is year-to-date). Up 3.5% YoY.
Inventory (Months of Supply)
1.60 months of supply — deep seller's-market territory.
Days on Market
Median time to contract unchanged YoY — homes still sell in about a week.
Sales Volume (Homes Sold)
June sales up 3.9% YoY, though year-to-date volume is down 2.1% on tight supply.
What's Happening in My Madison Neighborhood?
Madison isn't one market — it's a patchwork of micro-markets that move at very different speeds. As the state capital, a Big Ten university town, and home to a deep, diverse job base, the city spans everything from starter condos near campus to luxury homes on the west side, and the June data shows how much the pace varies by area.
The east side stood out for speed: zip code 53716 posted the fastest median time to contract in the city at just 5 days, alongside an 87.5% jump in sales year over year. On the higher end, 53705 (near the west side and university) carried a $615,100 median, and near-downtown 53703 commanded the top price per square foot at $447. The far west and Fitchburg-adjacent 53719 saw its median climb 15.0% to $460,000 on healthy volume, while 53704 on the north/east side moved the most homes overall (48 sales). A few outlying zips showed dramatic swings, but those came off small sale counts and are better read as noise than trend.
If you're weighing Madison against the surrounding communities, it's worth comparing how each is behaving right now. Explore the other Dane County markets we cover: Sun Prairie, DeForest, Verona, Waunakee, and Middleton — or dig deeper into the Madison city guide.
Madison Housing Market FAQ
Madison is an extreme seller's market. With only 1.60 months of supply as of the July 2026 snapshot, there are far more buyers than homes for sale. A balanced market runs closer to 5 to 6 months, so Madison remains firmly in sellers' favor.
The median sale price in the City of Madison was $460,000 in June 2026, up 7.0% from a year earlier. The year-to-date median is $440,000, up 3.5%.
Prices are up. The June median of $460,000 is 7.0% higher than a year ago, the year-to-date median of $440,000 is up 3.5%, and average price per square foot rose to $287 (up 3.6%). Fewer transactions are closing overall, but prices continue to climb.
The median home went under contract in 7 days in June 2026, unchanged from a year ago. The average was 19 days. Well-priced, move-in-ready homes routinely sell within a week.
On average, Madison homes sold for 1.55% over asking in June 2026 — down slightly from a year earlier, so bidding is still common but a bit less frenzied than at the peak.
There were 346 active listings and 159 pending sales in the City of Madison as of the July 1, 2026 snapshot — about 1.60 months of supply.
In June 2026, zip code 53716 on the east side sold fastest, with a median of just 5 days on market and an 87.5% year-over-year jump in sales. Most core Madison zips are selling in about a week.
Homes under $300,000 are the tightest, most competitive segment, at 1.43 to 1.81 months of supply. The $300,000 to $399,999 band is the single tightest at 1.30 months. Affordable inventory sells quickly, so buyers there should be ready to move fast.
Waiting is a gamble because supply is so tight. If rates fall, sidelined buyers flood back and compete for the same limited homes, pushing prices and over-asking offers up. Many buyers choose to buy now while they can negotiate, then refinance later. You can change your rate; you can't change the price you locked in.
Madison had 1.60 months of supply as of the July 2026 snapshot. Any figure under two months signals an extreme seller's market.
The $1,000,000-plus segment carries 4.35 months of supply, the deepest inventory of any Madison price range. Luxury buyers have more selection and negotiating room than buyers in the sub-$500,000 bands, where supply is under 1.5 months.
The average price per square foot in Madison was $287 in June 2026, up 3.6% year over year.
Prices are higher (median up 7.0% in June and 3.5% year to date), homes are selling just as fast (7-day median), and inventory remains extremely tight. The main shift is volume: year-to-date sales are down 2.1%, reflecting fewer homes changing hands rather than any softening in price.
Madison Schools
School quality drives a huge share of buyer demand in Madison. Most of the city is served by the Madison Metropolitan School District, one of the largest districts in Wisconsin, with a wide range of neighborhood elementary, middle, and high schools plus specialty and charter options.
Madison Metropolitan School District
The primary district serving the City of Madison. Explore boundaries, schools, and ratings.
Madison Schools Guide →See the Full Madison Market Data (Nerd Version 🤓)
Inventory Supply Gauge
Months of Supply by Price Range
| Price Range | Months of Supply | Active Now | Avg Sales/Mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–$99,999* | 12.00 | 2 | 0 |
| $100,000–$199,999 | 1.81 | 16 | 9 |
| $200,000–$299,999 | 1.43 | 43 | 30 |
| $300,000–$399,999 | 1.30 | 68 | 52 |
| $400,000–$499,999 | 1.43 | 86 | 60 |
| $500,000–$599,999 | 1.64 | 50 | 30 |
| $600,000–$699,999 | 1.48 | 22 | 15 |
| $700,000–$799,999 | 2.11 | 20 | 10 |
| $800,000–$899,999 | 2.95 | 14 | 5 |
| $1,000,000+ | 4.35 | 25 | 6 |
| Total | 1.60 | 346 | 217 |
*0–$99,999 shows an inflated supply figure off just 2 listings and near-zero monthly sales — a small-sample artifact, not a genuine buyer's segment. No price band is below 1.0 month, so there are no runaway "hot zones" this month; the $300K–$399K band is simply the tightest.
Neighborhood & Zip Code Trends (June, YoY)
| Zip | Sales | Median Sale | Δ Median | $/SqFt | Med DOM | % Over |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53704 | 48 | $375,500 | −2.5% | $269 | 6 | 2.1% |
| 53719 | 42 | $460,000 | +15.0% | $261 | 6 | 1.1% |
| 53718 | 32 | $425,000 | +8.4% | $230 | 9 | 0.9% |
| 53705 | 26 | $615,100 | +16.1% | $342 | 6 | 4.4% |
| 53711 | 26 | $510,000 | −15.6% | $315 | 6 | 2.8% |
| 53593 | 26 | $665,000 | +34.2% | $269 | 10 | −0.7% |
| 53703 | 16 | $605,500 | +37.6% | $447 | 7 | 0.5% |
| 53716 ⚡ | 15 | $425,500 | +10.3% | $254 | 5 | 3.6% |
| 53717 | 15 | $390,000 | −3.1% | $240 | 10 | −1.3% |
| 53713 | 10 | $262,500 | −27.5% | $255 | 7 | 3.6% |
| 53714* | 9 | $430,000 | +9.8% | $284 | 6 | 3.3% |
| 53562* | 7 | $724,000 | +108.0% | $261 | 9 | −3.1% |
| 53726* | 5 | $635,000 | — | $369 | 22 | −0.9% |
| 53715* | 3 | $600,000 | +57.8% | $386 | 9 | 2.8% |
⚡ Fastest median days on market. *Fewer than 10 sales — treat as small samples; large year-over-year swings in these zips (e.g., 53562 +108% off 7 sales, 53715 +57.8% off 3 sales) are statistical noise, not trends. Source: SCWMLS, June 2026 vs. June 2025.
Year-Over-Year Comparison
Methodology
All figures are drawn from the South Central Wisconsin MLS (SCWMLS) housing market snapshot for the City of Madison, taken July 1, 2026, and reflecting June 2026 closings. Monthly figures cover June; year-to-date figures cover January 1 through the snapshot date. Months of supply is calculated as active listings divided by the trailing 12-month average of monthly sales. Year-over-year comparisons are against the same period in 2025. Zip-code figures with fewer than 10 sales are flagged as small samples. Data deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
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