Community Corner

Belmont House Sales Take a Tumble; Prices Stable

Sale for single families slowed in first half of the year compared to last year. Condos lag.

Home sales in Belmont took a steep tumble in the number of single families sold in June of this year compared to the year before, according to the latest report by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman, the real estate and banking trade newspaper and website.

Only 17 single family homes sold in June at the height of the spring selling season compared with 31 in 2010.

Total sales for the first half of this year saw 10 fewer homes sold than sales in 2010; 69 to 79.

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The one upside: median sale prices for single families are hanging tough.

Median price this June was $730,000 compared to $700,000 last June.

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And year-to-date prices through the first half shows some strength in Belmont; $710,000 in 2011 vs. $686,000.  

Condos sales fell by 25 percent comparing June 2011 with the same month in 2010, and a 31 percent drop in the first half of 2011 vs. 2010.

Condo median sale prices also fell by 12 percent in June 2011 to June 2010 transactions but year-to-date median prices shows a healthy $100,000 which likely means that there remains a market for high-end property while the first-time homebuyers condo market has all but dried up. 

"However, June is typically one of the busiest months of the year for real estate closings. It is disappointing to see such a steep decline. Since June is the last month affected by the homebuyer tax credit, we're hopeful that coming months will bring some positive news."Massachusetts single-family homes sales dropped again in June, plunging to the lowest level for the month since 1991, according to The Warren Group.

Single-family home sales slid 23.5 percent in June, the fifth straight month of double-digit percentage decreases. A total of 4,313 single-family homes sold in June, down from 5,639 a year earlier. This marks the worst June since 1991, when there were 4,243 sales.

Second quarter home sales totaled 10,414, a near 26 percent decline from 14,010 in the second quarter of 2010. 

"This year's sales slump is carrying on as we compare the level of home sales in 2011 to the inflated number of sales driven by last year's homebuyer tax credits," said The Warren Group CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr.


Year-to-date home sales are also down 20 percent. From January to June, a total of 17,057 single-family homes have sold, compared to 21,322 during the same period a year ago.


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