FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Editorial Contacts:
Katie Curnutte
The Warren Group
(617) 896-5370
kcurnutte@thewarrengroup.com
Mass. Home Prices in February See Biggest Fall in 18 Years;
Sales Continue on Steady Decline,
According to The Warren Group
Condo Prices, Sales Follow Trend
BOSTON, March 25, 2008 – The Massachusetts median price of single-family homes in February experienced its biggest monthly decline since December 1990. The median price of condominiums followed suit with the largest fall since May 1993, according to a report released today by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
“February’s drop in median home prices was dramatic, but not unexpected,” said Timothy Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group. “Sales have been in such a slump for the past six months, it was only a matter of time before prices started declining by larger percentages.”
The median price of single-family homes fell 8.8 percent in February from $330,000 in February 2007 to $301,000. That was the largest decrease in a month since December 1990, when the median price dropped 11 percent. The year-to-date price was down 6 percent at the end of February from $335,000 in 2007 to $315,000.
Single-family home sales fell 19.2 percent in February 2008, when 2,123 were sold, compared to the 2,628 sold in February 2007. Year-to-date sales were down 24 percent from 5,581 to 4,241.
“We have to look back to 1990 and 1991 to see sales trends that resemble what is happening now,” Warren said. “Sales then fell by 15 to 20-plus percent for many months in a row, before recovering in April 1991. Prices followed, and didn’t begin to reliably appreciate until 1994. Circumstances surrounding the current slump in the housing market are different, and we probably won’t see that sort of recovery until the ever-increasing rate of foreclosures is tempered.”
Condominium prices in the BayState also fell in February, dropping 6.6 percent from $274,500 to $256,000. That was the biggest price drop for condos since May 1993, when the median price fell 10 percent. The year-to-date median price fell 5.1 percent from $274,000 to $260,000.
Condo sales fell 25 percent in February from 1,641 last year to 1,231. Year-to-date sales declined 30.8 percent from 3,423 to 2,368.
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.