May 31, 2012 (Chris Moore)
Monthly sales of existing single-family homes and condominiums remained strong in Massachusetts during April with double digit gains recorded in both monthly and yearly sales according to the latest data from the Massachusetts Association of Realtors® (MAR).
An estimated total of 4,864 existing homes and condos were sold in the Bay State in April. That was 11.2 percent higher than the 4,373 homes sold in March and 15.9 percent higher than the 4,195 homes sold in April 2011.
Trisha McCarthy, President of MAR, stated, “This is the first multiple percentage point jump we’ve seen in home prices since November 2010, which concluded a run of 12 months of increases due to the home buyer tax credit. The increased activity we’ve been experiencing over the past several months, which has included multiple-bid situations, is pushing prices up. Hopefully, people who want to sell but have been holding back will decide now is a good time to put their homes on the market.”
Sales of detached single-family homes accounted for 3,527 of the total sales in April, up 10.3 percent from 3,198 sales in March and were 18.3 percent higher than the 2,982 detached homes sold in April of 2011.
It was the tenth consecutive month that sales of detached single-family homes outperformed the previous year’s sales total.
The median sales price for a detached single-family home in April was $282,450, which was 5.8 percent higher than the sales price of $267,000 posted in March and up 2.7 percent from the $275,500 median sales price reported in April of last year.
Condominium sales accounted for 1,337 of the total sales in April, up 13.8 percent from the 1,175 sales in March and 10.2 percent higher than the 1,213 condos sold in April of 2011.
The median sales price for a condo in April was $273,000, which was unchanged from March but 3.0 percent higher than the sales price of $265,000 for a condo in April of last year.
The number of detached single-family homes available for sale in April declined 9.7 percent compared to last year, falling from 32,372 listings to 29,228 listings, which left an 8.5 months supply of homes on the market, up from an 8.3 months supply a year ago. Detached single-family homes typically took an average of 125 days to sell in April, down from 126 days last year.
Listings for condos fell 21.2 percent in April, from 12,677 in April of last year to 9,988 listings this year. That left a 7.7 months supply available for sale, down from a 10.0 months supply a year ago. Condos typically took an average of 115 days to sell in April compared to an average of 124 days in April of last year.
Tags: existing homes, condos, sales, median home prices, Massachusetts
