Quincy housing market evening out but still tough on first-time buyers

QUINCY — The real estate market is evening out in Quincy, according to real estate agent Tom Parrish, but it’s still an uphill battle to get into a first home. 

“If you look at the dynamics of what homes are available in Quincy, you have the 1950s ’60s homes that traditionally people will stay in five to six years,” Parrish said. “You know, family's growing, we need to move out, so we're going to make that next move, which would have been (a new home) when those homes were in the upper $200,000s into the $300,000s. When they can't make that move, they're staying in these older homes longer. So, it's not freeing that that home up, which would have been maybe where that first time home buyer would have worked into.” 

The average age of a home in Quincy is 41 years, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. There are 4,653 residential properties on or off the market, according to those figures, and so far, this year 87 have been sold. But a look online indicates that there are relatively few used homes for sale in Quincy.  

The median price of a home in Quincy is $412,000, a little higher than the $394,900 average for Grant County. Most homes for sale in Quincy are in the Paradise Park and Jackrabbit Estates developments, either recently built or under construction. Outside of those developments, there were 15 homes on the market in the city of Quincy Wednesday, according to real estate website Realtor.com. 

One factor in the equation is the rise in interest rates. The average 30-year mortgage rate as of Wednesday was 6.44%. 

“A couple of years ago, interest rates were still in that 4-5% (range),” Parrish said. “They went up during this last couple of years, for a while, even (up to) 8% and now they’ve come down to where they're, you know, let's say upper sixes, sevens, in that area. That's been a big influence.” 

Interest rates aren’t everything, however. The good old laws of supply and demand play a huge role, and prices are still going up more than down. The amount of money a homeowner can shell out every month is still the bottom line. 

“If you're looking at a $400,000-$500,000 home, and look at the income that is required, even with a two-household income, that can create (problems), because the lender is looking at debt-to-income ratios,” Parrish said. “So, depending on any individual buyers … your payment per month, unless you're putting down a pretty good down, is going to be pretty hefty. $3,000-a-month payments is not unusual, unless you're putting down 20-30% down. Then that issue becomes, do people actually have that kind of money?” 

Down payments are one area where Quincy is doing well, according to figures from ATTOM, which tracks real estate statistics. According to a recent report, the median down payment in the United States was $64,000 in June 2024, the last month for which data were available. The median in Washington was a jaw-dropping $130,000. In the Quincy market, however, the median down payment is just over half what it was a year earlier, $26,000 compared to $49,050 in July 2023. 

The market is nothing like as volatile as it’s been in the past two or three years, Parrish said.  

“For years here in Quincy, the normal marketing time was four to six months for a home,” he said. “Everybody knew that; we dealt with it. And then the market heated up and these homes were selling in maybe two months. Then it was a month, and then it was a week to 10 days. Now it's moved back to more like 30-60 days.” 

“There's always people who want to buy homes, there's always people who want to sell homes,” he said. “That's never going to change. It's just creating a market for where both of those entities can operate in a normal cycle.” 

    Developer Angel Garza cuts the ribbon for the Jackrabbit Estates housing development in Quincy in April. The Quincy housing market is still a challenge for people looking for a first home.