Published March 1, 2019

MELROSE — Bucking a state trend, single-family home and condo sale prices fell here last month from where they were a year ago, according to a report released this week.

Massachusetts single-family home and condominium prices reached all-time highs for the month of January. However, sales volume plunged by double digits last month to a four-year low, according to a new report from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

That was not the case in Melrose, where 13 single-family homes sold for an average median price of $602,500. In January of 2018, six houses sold for an average price of $653,000.

Last month, there were 3,230 total sales recorded in Massachusetts, a 10.2 percent decline from January 2018 when there were 3,626 transactions. This marked the fewest number of transactions for the month of January since 2015. Meanwhile, the median single-family sale price increased 4.9 percent on a year-over-year basis to $367,000, marking an all-time high for the month of January.

“A rising single-family sale price coupled with falling sales was a common trend we saw throughout 2018, so I’m not surprised it carried over into January 2019,” said Tim Warren, CEO of The Warren Group. “The last time January saw a sale volume this low was in 2015, and the local inventory still hovering near a historical low, you can expect to see fewer sales. Low supply is likely to push prices higher still.”

In January, there were 1,250 condominiums sold across the state, compared to 1,441 in January 2018 – a 13.3 percent decline and the fewest number of transactions recorded for the month of January since 2015. The median sale price rose by 2.8 percent, hitting $354,600 – the highest January median condo price in Massachusetts in history.

“Newly built or renovated condos are a big part of the market and commending higher prices,” Warren continued. “The difference in median price between a single-family home and a condo is now just $13,400.” 

In Melrose, nine condos were sold last month for an average median price of $420,000, down $100,000 from the January before.