Tower Hill Estates, a new development in the Norfolk County town of Randolph, will feature 20 homes with 2,600 to 3,000 square feet of living space. Prices start at $489,900. Pictured above is a model of a Tower Hill Estates home.
Single-family home sales jumped in most parts of the Bay State during the first quarter of the year compared to the same period last year, with at least eight counties experiencing double-digit increases.
Among the 12 counties for which final numbers are available, Norfolk had one of the biggest spikes in single-family home sales during the first quarter of 2002, according to statistics compiled by The Warren Group, parent company of Banker & Tradesman. In that county, which has some of the fastest-growing communities in the state, single-family home sales were up 21 percent. There were 1,278 single-family home sales in the first quarter of 2002 compared to 1,057 during last year’s first quarter.
Realtors who serve Norfolk County communities, which are as diverse as busy Brookline and quiet Cohasset, said low mortgage interest rates and a boost in consumer confidence in the economy helped spur more home sales. Several real estate brokers who serve Norfolk communities surrounding Boston, including Randolph and Braintree, said single-family home sales were aided by the communities’ affordability and proximity to the city.
“It’s always been a great location for Boston-bound commuters,” said Realtor Todd A. Sandler, referring to the town of Randolph, which is 15 miles south of Boston.
Single-family home sales were up 31 percent in Randolph during the first quarter. Eighty single-family homes were sold, compared to 61 such transactions during the same period a year ago.
Sandler, the owner of Todd A. Sandler Realtors in Randolph, said there are several new developments, featuring 3,000-square-foot Colonials, priced in the $400,000 to $500,000 range, that are attracting more buyers. That, combined with the fact that the town features public transportation that can bring a commuter into Boston within 15 minutes, and amenities like shopping and restaurants, has helped sales, he said. The Old Colony commuter rail line, which runs through several communities in the county, reopened in 1997, adding a new option for commuters who reside south of the Hub.
In nearby Braintree, single-family home sales were 51 percent higher during the first three months of the year, compared to the same months in 2001. Eighty single-family homes were sold from January through March in 2002.
Braintree’s open houses are packing in interested buyers. “We’re getting quite a response at open houses,” said Daniel A. Lauria, owner of Lauria Real Estate in Braintree. In recent months, it has not been uncommon to get more than one offer at an open house, said Lauria, noting that the biggest demand seems to be for homes in the $300,000 price range and lower.
Lauria said he’s not sure where the demand is coming from, but pointed out that he’s encountered prospective buyers from Dorchester and South Boston who are interested in relocating to Braintree. The town’s low tax rate is also a draw, he said.
While the more established urban areas like Randolph, Braintree and Quincy posted healthy increases in single-family home sales, some of the more up-and-coming bedroom communities experienced a more dramatic surge in home sales. Towns like Norfolk, Westwood and Medfield appeared to have the biggest jumps in single-family home sales.
Norfolk had 26 single-family home sales in the first quarter, a 136 percent increase from the 11 homes sold in the first three months of 2001. In Westwood, 45 single-family homes were sold compared to 23 a year ago, representing a 96 percent jump. And in Medfield, 33 single-family homes were sold, 57 percent more than the 21 home sales in the first quarter of 2001.
Realtors serving those communities said that the reputations of the schools were a big draw for young families that are priced out of cities and towns like Newton, Weston and Wellesley, which also boast high-achieving school systems.
“We’re [Westwood] up there with some of the top communities but we’re not nearly as expensive,” said Susan Gale, manager of Fieldstone Properties in Westwood.
In Westwood, the median price for a single-family home was $379,000 during the first quarter of the year, significantly lower than the first-quarter median price for a single-family home in Wellesley, which was $598,750.
In Norfolk, a fairly large development of homes called Christina Estates is consistently finishing construction of new homes and this could be pushing the sales numbers up, according to Realtor Connie Sweeney.
Demanding Public
Sweeney said the towns of Franklin, Medfield and Norfolk are also spending more to install public sewer systems and that is freeing up more lots for development. While the town of Medfield doesn’t have large tracts of vacant land and new construction, builders have discovered lots to build homes, said Sweeney, a partner at Medfield Properties.
Meanwhile, Franklin, where first-quarter sales increased 41 percent from 56 to 79, has much more developable land than Medfield, she said. The population and housing boom in Franklin is largely due to the business and commercial development along Interstate 495, she said.
“We had very busy first quarter,” said Sweeney. “The interest rates were very good and I’m sure that helped first-time buyers and people who were trying to move into something a little bit larger.”
The sales spike in Norfolk County had very little to do with an increase in the number of listings of for-sale homes, according to Realtors interviewed by Banker & Tradesman. Several real estate agents maintained that the demand exceeded the supply of homes on the sales market in the first months of 2002.
David S. Drinkwater, president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, said there was a slight increase in the number of listings this year, which may have pushed first-quarter sales up during the first quarter. But he said there were still not enough homes on the market to meet the demand.
The demand and lack of supply pushed sale prices up throughout the state. Prices for single-family homes in Norfolk County increased 8 percent during the first quarter. The median price for a single-family was $285,000 during that period, up $21,500 from the $263,500 price tag a year ago, according to The Warren Group.
Brookline and Dover had the sharpest price spikes at 25 percent and 24 percent, respectively. In Brookline, the median price for a single-family home was $730,000, up from $585,000 a year ago. Sales were up 32 percent.
Despite having 44 percent fewer single-family homes sales during this year’s first quarter, Dover still managed to see its median single-family home price rise to $815,000 from $655,000 in 2001.
Avon and Holbrook both saw home prices jump 21 percent. Avon’s median price was $196,450 and Holbrook’s $217,500. Medfield’s median single-family home price was $433,000, a 20 percent increase from the median price of $359,900 during last year’s first quarter.
The Warren Group collects information from registries of deeds throughout the state. The information includes all sales transactions, including for sale by owner, recorded at the registries. Statistics for Essex and Middlesex counties were unavailable as of last week. But the rise in single-family home transactions in Norfolk was second among the 12 counties for which final first-quarter figures have been compiled, topped only by a 24 percent increase in Suffolk County.
