Is the Wausau area housing market about to turn? | Getting Real with Real Estate

Looking at the Marathon County real estate market for quarter 3, 2025

A lot of economic indicators that I track are trending in the wrong direction. And that contrasts with what I am hearing in the field.

I have a regular meeting in which I end up talking to a lot of builders. What am I hearing from them? They’re all booked up, to the point of being very picky and choosy and turning away work. Even good work, the kind many would have salivated over pre-pandemic.

From what I am told, this is the same nationwide, as heard from builders at conferences.

Why are they booked up? A combination of high demand and short labor supply.

But the tea leaves suggest that might be about to change.

Factors to consider

According to the National Association of Realtors, the median age of first-time homebuyers is skyrocketing. The median age is now higher than when I bought my first house, and I was much older than my parents were when they bought theirs.

A possible reason? Homes are just becoming less affordable. I looked at this earlier this year. Marathon County was once deep into the affordability range on the index, according to Forward Analytics; and the entire state was considered affordable. As of 2024, Marathon County is one of the last affordable counties, and it’s barely over the edge. (Chart is my creation based on data from Forward Analytics.)

And home sales are slowing in Marathon County. Total number of sales is closer to 2013 and 2014, when the housing market was recovering from the 2008 financial crisis. With sales numbers around 1,300-,1400 per year, that’s less than the 1,600-1,800 sales in peak years when the buying frenzy began.