Essex County Housing Market Q1 2021 Review

  • The median price of Single-Family Homes (SFH) sold in Q1 2021increased 11% to $550,000 from Q1 2020,  but was in line with the $555,000 in the second half of the year 2020.
  • Every one of the 34 cities and towns in Essex County saw Year-on-Year (YOY) increases in the median selling price; only 6 of the 34 cities and towns recorded a median SFH price under $500,000, while 3 saw that figure exceed $1 million.
  • Numbers in any Q, especially Q1, need to be treated with caution: some of the largest apparent increases in median prices occurred on a small number of sales.
  • The Condo median sales price increased 9.9% to $365,000. In Boston, the median price was very similar to the levels of the last 3 years, during which time the Essex County Condo median price has increased some 20%.

 

Essex County Housing Market

For a more detailed report on the market in Q1 go to Team Harborside’s website and read: Essex County Q1 Market Review (more…)

New Listings week ending April 16

Still a small number of New Listings:

New Listings
Click on these links for details: (more…)

Open Houses weekend April 17/18

Here are the weekend’s Open Houses. Be aware that with such low inventory, many new listings receive offers before the weekend Open Houses.
This list will be updated on Sunday morning (because of the quirks of MLS many of the Sunday Open Houses don’t show up on Saturday.)

Open Houses
Click on these links for details: (more…)

New Listings mid-week April 14

A modest number of New Listings this week:

New Listings>

Click on these links for details: (more…)

Why Is The Liquor Store Called The Packie?

In North Carolina they call it the ABC store, and in Pennsylvania, it’s the “state store.” Michigan residents make runs to the “party store.” And in Massachusetts, the liquor store is known as the “packie,” short for “package store.”

If you ever asked where our slang term came from, you were probably told it’s because the Boston Brahmins wanted drinking to be discreet. So, the story goes, they used their clout to get laws passed requiring liquor to be packaged discreetly in nondescript, brown paper after it was sold.

Hence, the package store.

But food historian Robert F. Moss says that origin story came from the historical research method he calls “just making stuff up.” That story, after all, doesn’t explain why the term is also used in South Carolina, where the Brahmins had no influence over lawmakers. (more…)

Open Houses weekend April 10/11

Here are the weekend’s Open Houses. Be aware that with such low inventory, many new listings receive offers before the weekend Open Houses.
This list will be updated on Sunday morning (because of the quirks of MLS many of the Sunday Open Houses don’t show up on Saturday.)

Click on these links for details: (more…)

New Listings week ending April 9

A few more New Listings:

New Listings
Click on these links for details: (more…)

New Listings after Easter

A modest increase in New Listings this week:

New Listings

Click on these links for details:
Marblehead New Listings
Swampscott New Listings
Salem New Listings
Beverly New Listings
Lynn New Listings

These tables show that inventory is greatly reduced from a year ago, when levels were already low: (more…)

Open Houses weekend of April 3/4

Here are the today’s Open Houses. There are none currently scheduled for Easter Sunday. If that changes this list will be updated tomorrow morning. Be aware that with such low inventory, many new listings receive offers before the weekend Open Houses.

Open Houses

Click on these links for details: (more…)