Realtors say the Greenbush commuter line, which launched in the fall, has brought buyers to South Shore communities. This Hingham home, which is adjacent to a commuter rail parking lot, is under agreement.

even months after launching, the new Greenbush commuter line is bringing a fresh supply of home-seekers to South Shore communities, according to local Realtors.

“It’s definitely a plus. I’ve had people coming down from the city who would not consider Hingham until the train came,” said Joanne Conway, an agent with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Hingham.

The Greenbush line, running 18 miles through Braintree, Weymouth, Hingham, Cohasset and Scituate, completed restoration of the historic Old Colonial Railroad. When service started running, there were hopes that it would alleviate traffic congestion on the South Shore and make the region more desirable to people who have to commute into Boston for work.

Realtors who work in Scituate, Cohasset and Hingham say the new rail service has brought more buyers to their doors. Home seekers who thought living in those commu-nities would have meant nightmare commutes into Boston are now considering the towns.

While Realtors insist the commuter line has boosted interest, there hasn’t been a jump in home sales in those communities. Sales through April have declined in Cohasset, Hingham, Braintree and Weymouth compared to a year earlier, and there was a modest increase in home sales in Scituate.

But brokers point out that sales are down statewide. Meanwhile, ridership has climbed during the last three months. On June 4, there were 1,954 commuters riding on five inbound morning trains during rush hour, compared to 1,732 in May 14 and 1,640 on April 9, according to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
Bill Good, a Realtor with Dean & Hamilton in Cohasset, said 40 percent of the buyers he’s helping are searching on the South Shore exclusively because of the train.

“The profile of the buyer has shifted to allow for those professionals who might currently live in the South End, Back Bay, Charlestown, South Boston. They’re now inter-ested to consider Hingham, Scituate, and Cohasset as great places to live because they can have the various modes of transportation, especially the train,” he said.

Good said the train is drawing a mix of people. He is working with a couple in their 50s who now live in Walpole and want to relocate to Scituate because of the train.

“What is so dramatic is that [the train] is offsetting the challenge in the real estate market overall. The real estate market is definitely hiccupping, and yet our business is continuing based on the added livability of these communities,” he said.

Mary McCready, manger of Jack Conway & Co.’s Hingham office, said the Greenbush train is a huge benefit. “Before it could have been that the commute turned off a po-tential buyer,” said McCready.

Next Stop: Their Home

McCready’s office recently snagged buyers for a $679,000 Hingham home that is adjacent to a commuter station parking lot. The home had been listed with another com-pany for six months. McCready’s company acquired the listing in early spring. It was on the market for a nearly three months, before a couple that was renting in Boston toured the home at an open house.

“The buyers were the perfect buyers. They were excited they could walk across the parking lot to the train. They both work in Boston,” McCready said.

While these particular buyers found the proximity of the train station convenient, other buyers aren’t so eager to live near a noisy rail line.

“It was a positive for these buyers, but generally speaking if there are a lot of properties on the market and all factors are equal, and one house is near the train tracks and another isn’t, you’re going to go for the house that isn’t,” McCready said.

David Drinkwater of Grand Gables Realty Group said Scituate has benefited the most because prior to the Greenbush line commuters who didn’t want to drive to Boston had to travel to Hingham to catch a ferry.

“Other than driving to a Red Line station to Braintree or Quincy, that’s been the only viable public transportation in Scituate,” he said.

In Scituate, 57 single-family homes were sold through April, up from 53 a year earlier, according to The Warren Group, Banker & Tradesman’s parent company. The me-dian selling price plunged 22 percent to $430,000 from $550,000 during those months.

Drinkwater can look out the window of his office in North Scituate Village and see a commuter station parking lot. More and more cars are parking in the lot, which used to be empty, he said.

Chris D’Alessandro, manager of Jack Conway’s Cohasset office, said buyers are relocating from communities like Quincy because of the train.

“I haven’t heard any negative feedback [about the train] from buyers and sellers,” she said.