By Ethan Forman
Staff writer
—
The Bay State and the North Shore saw home sales plummet but prices holding steady in July with the expiration of a federal homebuyers tax credit.
Statewide, sales of single-family homes decreased by 28 percent compared with July 2009, while condominium sales fell by 33.1 percent, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors.
There were 3,212 single-family homes sold statewide in July, according to the Realtors association, a 38.1 percent dip from the 5,185 homes sold in June, when many rushed to close to be eligible for the tax credit.
While most North Shore communities showed similar or worse sales trends than the state, some towns, like Marblehead and Boxford, recorded increases in both sales and prices for single-family homes.
"Marblehead generally does well," said Matt Dolan of Harborside Realty in Marblehead, because it has seen its prices go down, it's on the coast and it's a "generally well-run" town.
Buyers are taking advantage of discounts, Dolan added, while sellers have gotten realistic about pricing.
"I really don't see anything here that is bad news," North Shore Association of Realtors 2010 President Bert Beaulieu said. "There are good, credible reasons why you are seeing what you were seeing in July."
The drop was expected, Beaulieu said, given the expiring tax credit, which acted like a defibrillator to the housing market. In the month after the tax credit ended, sales on the North Shore dropped 24.6 percent. This area stretches from Nahant in the south, to Salisbury in the north, to Methuen in the west, to Rockport in the east.
Prices have held steady, however, and Beaulieu said listings have continued to increase.
The July housing market has weighed on the economy nationwide. A report Tuesday from the National Association of Realtors that existing home sales hit a 15-year low sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average skidding toward the 10,000 level, with concerns about the strength of the economic recovery.
July marked a reversal of steady gains over the past year and saw the fewest number of sales since 1990, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and The Warren Group, which publishes data on real estate.
Single-family house prices, however, have remained steady, with the Warren Group reporting a median price of $315,000 in July, up 3 percent from a year ago. The Realtors association reported the median price of homes was $333,000, up 7.4 percent from July 2009.
Condos statewide also showed prices holding steady in July, with a median price of $286,000, up from $275,000 a year ago, according to the Massachusetts Realtors Association.
On the North Shore, Middleton saw both home sales and prices fall dramatically, while the condo market was up in July, according to the Warren Group.
Tom Doyle, owner of Doyle Real Estate in Middleton and Doyle Town Crier in Topsfield, said he could not explain why that happened, but he said the Tri-Town area continues to be a draw, given the strong reputation of the Masconomet Regional School District.
"I think the draw is there but sellers have to be realistic on prices," Doyle said. There is not a lot of building going on, and that has created demand for existing homes in places like Boxford, which recorded both sales and price gains for single-family houses. Doyle is seeing a trend away from the large "McMansions" built in recent years, and a move toward 2,500-square-foot houses in the $400,000 to $600,000 price range.
In Danvers, housing sales slumped 62 percent in July, compared with the same month one year ago.
"It's not so much Danvers. It's the first-time homebuyers tax credit, which fueled the market last year," said Dan Bennett, owner/broker with Dan Bennett Real Estate. (Bennett is a selectman and a Republican candidate challenging Democratic state Rep. Ted Speliotis for his seat.)
Around this time last year, "a lot of inventory in Danvers moved" fueled by the tax credit, Bennett said. After the tax credit expired, "those people weren't there."
"Now, it's going to be a year before we get back to normal market conditions," Bennett added.
Material from The Associated Press was used this report. Staff writer Ethan Forman can be reached at 978-338-2673 or by e-mail at eforman@salemnews.com.
