Rhode Island's Home Prices Register Record Losses FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Editorial Contact: Aglaia Pikounis The Warren Group (617) 896-5370 apikounis@thewarrengroup.com Rhode Island’s Home Prices Register Record Losses Single-family Home, Condo Sales Fall By Double-Digit Percentages BOSTON, Jan. 5, 2009 – The median selling price for single-family homes in Rhode Island plunged almost 20 percent in November, marking the steepest percentage decline in year-over-year monthly prices since The Warren Group began tracking the state’s real estate market in 1989. The median price for single-family homes fell 19.6 percent to $205,000 from $255,000 in November 2007, according to The Warren Group. November’s percentage decline was even sharper than September’s when median home prices slumped 17 percent compared to a year earlier. Year-to-date the median home price has retreated 12.4 percent to $234,250 from $267,500. “November is the sixth consecutive month that median home prices in Rhode Island have been off by double-digit percentages. Homeowners are being pushed to lower asking prices as buyers, shaken by stock market woes and unemployment growth, hold back on making major purchases,” said Timothy Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group. “Home prices won’t recover until consumer confidence picks up and sales climb for several months.” Providence and Kent counties have experienced the most dramatic price declines this year. In Providence County, the median home price plummeted 14.2 percent in the first 11 months of the year to $210,300 from $245,000 last year. Kent County’s median home price has fallen 13 percent to $180,000 from $233,000. Single-family home sales also decreased in November, after a pick-up in October. Home sales slid 21.1 percent to 452 from 573 a year ago. It was the worst sales pace for the month of November since 1996, according to The Warren Group. The drop-off came after sales climbed 11 percent in October compared to the same month in 2007. A total of 6,242 single-family homes were sold from January through November, down 14.2 percent from 7,275 a year earlier. Condominium sales were off sharply in November, sinking more than 40 percent from a year ago. A total of 106 condos sold, a 41.4 percent drop from 181 last November. It was the slowest sales pace for November in more than a decade. In the first 11 months of 2008, 1,406 condos were sold -- 34 percent fewer than the 2,130 condo sales a year earlier. The median price for condos sold in November slipped to $188,350, down 12.8 from $216,000 a year ago. Year-to-date the median condo price eased 6 percent to $211,421 from $225,000. About The Warren Group The Warren Group, based in Boston, is the publisher of Banker & Tradesman, The Commercial Record and a series of association publications. As the premier provider of real estate data in New England, The Warren Group offers a range of real estate products and services for professionals and consumers searching for real estate and financial information. For more information about The Warren Group, please visit www.thewarrengroup.com or call 617-428-5100. ###

Posted on Monday, January 05, 2009 (Archive on Saturday, February 24, 2091) Posted by apikounis  Contributed by apikounis

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