The median sale price for both single-family homes and condominiums continued to set records in November as sales declined on a year-over-year basis, according to a new report from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
Last month, there were 5,366 single-family home sales in Massachusetts, a 7.8 percent decrease from November 2020 when there were 5,819 transactions. Compared to November 2019 (4,625 transactions), single-family home sales increased 16 percent. In November 2021, the median single-family sale price increased 10.9 percent on a year-over-year basis to $510,000, up from $450,000 in November 2020, and up 30.4 percent from November 2019, when the median sale price was $391,000. This marked a new all-time high for the median sale price for the month of November and the eighth consecutive month that the median single-family home price has been above $500,000.
“When looking at the November sales numbers, it’s important to do a two-year analysis to get a complete picture of the Massachusetts housing market,” Tim Warren, CEO of The Warren Group, said in a statement. “One might think that a 7.8 percent decrease in sales is cause for alarm, but activity is still well above where it was during a ‘normal’ marketplace. In fact, November 2021 marked the second-most single-family home sales we’ve ever recorded in the month of November. In the coming year I think we will continue to see median prices increase, but at a more moderate pace. Sales volume is likely to be flat given the short supply, high prices, and rising interest rates.”
The number of new single-family listings – 3,854 – that came on the market saw very little decline from November 2020, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and was slightly above the 3,680 that came to market in November 2019. Overall inventory sat at 3,848 homes last month, a 45.5 percent decline from November 2020 and a 65.5 percent drop from November 2019, reflecting the speed of transactions in the last year. Months of supply sat at 0.8.
“Historically, data has shown a decrease in demand this time of year though buyers remained active in November. Buyers continue to purchase homes before properties have the chance to stay on the market for longer than 33 days, on average,” Dawn Ruffini, 2022 president of MAR and Realtor at RE/MAX Connections in Wilbraham, said in a statement. “This sustained demand is partly due to the low mortgage rates we’ve seen for months and the continually low supply of homes available.”
Year-to-date, there have been 56,538 single-family home sales in Massachusetts, a 2.3 percent increase from the first 11 months of 2020. Meanwhile, the year-to-date median single-family home price increased 14.6 percent on the same basis to $510,000.
Condo Sales Up Over 2019
There were 2,114 condominium sales in November, a 0.6 percent decrease from November 2020 when there were 2,126 condo sales. Compared to November 2019 (1,898 transactions), condo sales were up 11.4 percent. Meanwhile, the median sale price increased 8.5 percent on a year-over-year basis to $445,000 – a new high for the month of November. Compared to November 2019 ($378,000), the median condo price was up 17.7 percent.
“The condo market followed similar trends to the single-family market in November – a decline in sales on a year-over-year basis, but activity was still well above what we normally see for the month,” Warren added. “The condo market stumbled especially hard in the second and third quarters last year due to COVID-19, so there’s plenty of pent-up demand from prospective buyers that’s still playing out over a year later.”
November saw only a 5 percent year-over-year drop in the number of new condo listings statewide, MAR reported, with 1,647 ultimately hitting the market compared to 1,443 that became available in November 2019. Total condo inventory was 2,318, 52.2 percent down from last November and 40.7 percent down from November 2019. Condos, like single-family homes, continued to fly off the shelves with the average total number of days on market sitting at 33, compared to 53 in November 2019. Months of supply sat at 1.1.
Year-to-date, there have been 26,316 condo sales, a 21.6 percent increase from the first 11 months of 2020 with a median sale price of $455,000, a 9.6 percent increase on the same basis.
