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With demand showing no signs of slowing down among prospective buyers, median single-family home and condominium prices spiked in April, reaching new all-time highs in the process, according to a new report from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
Single-family home and condo sales declined significantly during the second quarter of 2020 as a result of economic uncertainties surrounding COVID-19. In order to give a more accurate representation of activity in the Massachusetts real estate market, The Warren Group reported two years of data as a comparison in this month’s sales report.
Last month, there were 4,517 single-family home sales in Massachusetts, 21.1 percent increase from April 2020 when there were just 3,729 transactions. Compared to April 2019 (4,293 transactions), single-family home sales were up 5.2 percent. In April 2021, the median single-family sale price spiked 21.1 percent on a year-over-year basis to $508,000, up from $430,000 in April 2020 and up 32.6 percent from April 2019. This is the first time ever that the median single-family home price has surpassed $500,000.
“On a year-over-year basis, the data indicates that single-family sales activity went gangbusters in April, but it’s important to consider the impact COVID-19, last year’s lockdown, and economic uncertainties had on activity in the second quarter,” Tim Warren, CEO of The Warren Group, said in a statement. “To get a more apples-to-apples comparison, we took a look at activity to 2019. Sales were up 5.2 percent from April 2019. Furthermore the 4,517 single family homes sold is an all-time record for the month of April. Even more impressive were the gains in median price, gaining 18.1 percent from 2020 and 32.6 percent from 2019. The amazing fact of the matter is that the monthly median price has not declined in any month in the past five years, not even during the darkest days of the pandemic.”
Year-to-date, there have been 15,262 single-family home sales in Massachusetts, an 11.5 percent increase from the first four months of 2020. Meanwhile, the year-to-date median single family home price increased 15.7 percent on the same basis to $440,000.
Single-family inventory increased month-over-month to 4,103, with the arrival of 6,721 new listings, a 16 percent jump over March but 15 percent down compared to April 2019, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. The total number of months of supply stands at 0.8, with the average final days on market sitting at 28, MAR calculated.
Agents reported sellers receiving on average 103.7 percent of the original asking price, marking the eighth straight month that figure has been at or over 100 percent and indicating widespread bidding wars and multiple offer situations.
There were 2,530 condominium sales in April, a 55.9 percent increase from April 2020 when there were 1,623 condo sales. Compared to April 2019 (1,988 transactions), condo sales were up 27.3 percent. Meanwhile, the median sale price increased 12.3 percent on a year-over-year basis to $475,000 – a new all-time high. This marked the tenth-consecutive month that the median condo price has been more than $400,000.
“Regardless of which year you compare it to, the Massachusetts condo market was red hot in April 2021,” Warren said. “The Greater Boston condo market is definitely back, and for good reason. There’s a clearly-defined reopening schedule for the city, which will help spur activity in population centers that were very unappealing to prospective buyers just a year ago.”
Year-to-date, there have been 7,955 condo sales, a 27.4 percent increase from the first four months of 2020 with a median sale price of $440,000, a 6 percent increase on the same basis.
