Published in the November 29, 2016 edition.
WAKEFIELD – The town saw fewer single family homes sold in October than a year ago, following a state trend.
According to The Warren Group, publisher of Banker and Tradesman, there were 17 homes sold in October 2016 compared to 24 sold in October 2015.
Statewide, there were 4,913 single-family homes sold in Massachusetts in October, compared to 5,138 in October 2015, a 4.4 percent decrease. This marks only the second time in 2016 when the number of homes sold declined from the same month in the previous year. Year-to-date, sales across the state are up by 10.8 percent with 50,561 homes sold through October 2016 compared with 45,648 sold during the same time last year.
In Wakefield, there were 211 single family homes sold through October 2016, up from the 202 sold at this time a year ago.
The median sale price of a single-family home in October in Massachusetts reached $340,000, a 3.7 percent increase from $327,750 last year. Year-to-date prices are up 1.7 percent from last year, with a median sale price of $346,000.
In Wakefield, the median sale price soared from October 2015 to 2016, from $401,500 to $444,000, a 10.6 percent increase.
Year-to-date median sale price of a single family home in Wakefield was $452,000 through October 2015 and by the end of October 2016 it had climbed to $481,000, an increase of 6.4 percent.
“Homes sales in the first half of 2016 were gangbusters,” said Timothy Warren, CEO of The Warren Group. “So far in the second half of the year, sales have slowed a bit and even declined in two of the four months. It is still too early to tell if demand has waned or whether low inventory leaves prospective homebuyers with too few choices. With interest rates expected to rise before year-end, we may see a steady but not booming market this winter.
For condominiums the October median sale price reached $315,000, a 1.6 percent increase from $310,000 in the same month last year. Year-to-date, condo prices are up 4.7 percent with a median sale price of $330,000 compared with $315,000 in the same time period last year.
The number of condos sold in October decreased by 2.8 percent, with 1,886 sold compared with 1,940 sold in October 2015. Year-to-date, condo sales have increased by 7.7 percent to 20,001 condos sold compared with 18,564 in the same timeframe last year.
In Wakefield, there were seven condos sold in October 2016, compared to six sold in October 2015.
Year to date, there had been 78 condos sold through October, compared to 75 sold by the same time in 2015.
The median sales price of a condo in Wakefield in October 2016 was $321,000 compared to $302,000 last October.
