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Aglaia Pikounis                                                                        

The Warren Group

(617) 896-5370                                                             

apikounis@thewarrengroup.com

Home Sales Increase for Third Straight Month in Mass.;

Third Quarter Sales Jump 6 Percent from Last Year

Condo Sales Climb for the First Time in More Than Two Years

BOSTON, Oct. 27, 2009 – Single-family home sales in Massachusetts increased for the third consecutive month in September, helping to push third quarter sales up 6 percent from a year ago, according to report by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

“The increase in home sales for three months straight is giving us some hope that the housing market is truly on the mend. We believe that some of these gains were the result of first-time homebuyer tax credit which is due to expire in several weeks,” said Timothy M. Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group. “If this trend of increased sales volume continues through October, we may end the year with about the same number of home sales as 2008.”

Condominium sales in Massachusetts, which have plunged by double-digit percentages in 2009, also perked up in September. September marked the first year-over-year increase in condo sales in more than two years.

Single-family homes sales rose 4.5 percent in September to 3,785 from 3,623 in September 2008. Third quarter home sales totaled 13,215, a 6 percent increase from 12,466 in third quarter 2008.

Year-to-date sales fell 3.9 percent to 29,767 from 30,987 last year. Just about 5 percent of single-family home sales in the first nine months of the year were real estate-owned or bank-owned properties.

The median price for homes sold in September slipped 1.4 percent to $285,000 from $289,000 last year. It was the smallest drop in year-over-year monthly median home prices in about two years. The third quarter median home price dipped 3.9 percent to $299,900 from $312,000 in the previous year’s third quarter. The year-to-date median price is down 9.5 percent to $285,000 from $315,000.

“The declines in monthly median home prices have moderated compared to earlier this year, but the year-to-date median price is about $75,000 lower than it was in 2005 when prices peaked,” Warren said.

Condo sales crept up 3.7 percent in September to 1,693 from 1,633 in September 2008. A total of 5,989 condos sold in the third quarter, 2.9 percent lower that the 6,166 condo transactions recorded in the third quarter of last year. In the first nine months of 2009, condo sales fell 15.9 percent to 13,453 from 16,004 during the same period in 2008.

September’s median selling price for condos dipped 2.3 percent to $259,000 from $265,000. The third quarter median condo price dropped 4.2 percent to $273,000 from $285,000 a year earlier. Year-to-date, the median condo price has retreated 8.2 percent to $257,000 from $280,000.

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.

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