Massachusetts home sales tank 30% in November: The Warren Group

Massachusetts condo and single-family home sales dropped substantially in November compared to 2009, but increases in home prices sparked a little optimism for market conditions finishing out the year. Single-family homes sales fell for the fifth consecutive month, according to The Warren Group, down 29.8% year-over-year to 2,903 sales. Sales also fell from October, when 2,991 homes sold. “As predicted, we are winding down the year on a sour note,” said The Warren Group CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr., noting that 2009 sales were inflated by the first-time homebuyer tax credit. The Warren Group is a Northeastern publisher of real estate and financial data. The company publishes Banker & Tradesman. The firm reported that single-family home sales declined in every county except for Nantucket County, where sales rose almost 12% compared to last year. Year-to-date, there have been 37,718 home sales in Massachusetts, according to The Warren Group. Year-to-date sales are down 1.3% compared to 2009. November condo sales decreased 37.3% year-over-year, totaling just 1,154 sales. “This is the fewest number of condo sales since February,” The Warren Group noted. Condo sales also dipped from October’s total of 1,182. To date in 2010, 16,496 condominiums have sold in Massachusetts, down 3.7% from the year-ago period. Sale prices in both sectors are on the rise, jumping 7.3% for single-family homes and 7.5% for condos. The median sale price was $294,000 for a single-family home and $263,250 for a condo. For a list of home sales by town, click here. For a list of condo sales by town, click here. For a breakdown by county, click here for single-family home data and here for condo data. Write to Christine Ricciardi.