New listings dwindling
As the beach beckons so the number of new listings is dropping off. (more…)
Essex County Median Home Prices Town by Town
This report shows Single Family Home (SFH) median prices for each city and town in Essex County for 2015 compared with 2014. Several towns have a very small number of sales, especially in the first quarter, so I have used the half-year prices to calculate the change from 2014.
The second table shows the towns with the largest increase and decrease year over year. Overall, the message is that prices in both Essex County and Massachusetts have edged up 1% in 2015. As always, there are variations from town to town. (more…)
Open Houses on July 19
Here are today’s Open Houses: (more…)
But I thought you only wrote about Marblehead
Last night a friend, who lives in Swampscott, said when I told him I was publishing my Swampscott Mid-Year Housing Review “but I thought you only wrote about Marblehead.”
As I told my friend, I maintain statistics on all 34 Essex County cities and towns. While I publish regularly on Marblehead, Beverly, Salem and Swampscott individually, and Essex County overall, I monitor all towns – and not just in Essex County. I have provided market reports to buyers and sellers from Amesbury to Andover to Revere, as well as for Middlesex County. (more…)
Housing Inventory still down heading to July 4
As we head towards July 4th, often the target date for home buyers wanting to be in their new homes for the start of the school year, housing inventory remains well down from a year ago. (more…)
What’s happening – or not – in the Marblehead market?
I am always cautious about reading too much into short-term trends, especially in a market like Marblehead with a small number of sales, but at the same time I do try to report on current market conditions.
And I am puzzled by what has been happening over the last 2-3 weeks – or rather by what has not been happening. And that is houses receiving accepted offers. (more…)
We’re off: more listings, Open Houses
As expected, we have seen a decent number of new listings this week. We even have the promise of 60 degrees and sunshine on Sunday.
So make plans to visit these Open Houses:
(more…)
Beverly, Salem and Swampscott Housing Market Reports
In the world of small numbers it is necessary to be cautious about drawing too many conclusions. That is why, for example, I am not including percentage changes for the tables below. The message I take from these numbers is that, in general, the market continues to progress in an orderly manner. (more…)
Housing inventory: how low can it go?
A recent Boston Globe article Snow delays spring market highlighted the lack of inventory in the, you know, “important” markets such as Cambridge and Somerville.
We know inventory is down from last year, when if you remember we had the polar vortex, but where do we stand, here in Essex County and indeed throughout Massachusetts, compared with the last several years? (more…)
Beverly 2014 housing market: steady progress
Here are the highlights for the Beverly market for 2014.
Single Family Homes (SFH)
– the median SFH price increased 3.3% to $380,000, which is 5% below the peak of $400,000 in 2004
– sales increased to 329, the best year since 2004
– the ASR* fell sharply from 92.5% to 82.9%, an indication of rising prices
Condos
– the median condo price increased 4.2% to $237,500, which is 7% below the peak of $255,000 in 2005
– sales were down slightly and are still well below the levels seen in the 2004-07 period
– the ASR* fell from 94.9% to 87.5%, an indication of rising prices
Tax rate
– the FY2015 tax rate is $14.11, a slight decrease from $14.16 in FY2014. (more…)
Essex County 2015 property tax rates
FY2015 tax rates have now been announced for all 34 Essex County cities and towns. As usual, they show wide variations: for residential property, from$10.84 in Manchester to $20.56 in Amesbury; and for commercial, from $10.84 in Manchester to $33.58 in Lynn.
There have also been significant differences in the changes for tax rates for FY2015, ranging from a decrease of 14% in Wenham to an increase of 14% in Georgetown.
Recall that FY2015 tax assessments are based on values at January 1, 2014, using 2013 sales information; and that Proposition 2 1/2 limits the amount that can be raised through property taxes. In general, when assessed values increase, tax rates go down. But even when the tax rate goes down tax bills usually increase.
Here are the tax rates for the last 4 years for each city or town. The rate for FY2015 applies for the entire year to June 30, 2015, so the 3rd and 4th quarter tax bills will be adjusted for any changes occurring from the new rate.
Residential:
Source: Dept of Revenue, Assessors’ Offices
Commercial:
Source: Dept of Revenue, Assessors’ Offices
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or [email protected].
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty
Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark licensed to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
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Homes for sale in Essex County plummet in recent years
This week I am looking at the number of Single Family Homes (SFHs) for sale, as a follow up to last week’s Where have all the Condo sellers gone? article. In that article I pointed out that the number of condos for sale, in both Marblehead and Essex County, was down some 70% from the levels seen in the 2006/07 period, and offered some thoughts on why that might be. (more…)
Beverly Third Quarter Housing Review
The Single Family Home (SFH) market
The median price in Beverly in Q3 was flat with a year ago, consistent with the trend in Essex County overall. While prices have recovered from the effects of the great recession, the 2014 number is likely to come in some 4-5% below the peak level of $400,000 in 2004. (more…)
Housing Market 2014 – the first nine months
As promised last week I am publishing numbers for the first 9 months of 2014. These show that for Essex County and Massachusetts overall, sales of Single Family Homes (SFHs) are down slightly year-on-year, while prices are up slightly. There are, however, quite wide fluctuations from town to town: (more…)
Third Quarter Housing Review
Third quarter numbers for sales and median prices support the argument I have been making in recent weeks that we are now in a more stable market, having recovered from the 2008/2009 slump. As always, I caution against reading too much into one quarter’s numbers, particularly in those cases where the number of sales is small. Next week I shall publish a report for the first nine months of the year, which will provide a fuller picture of the market.
A good sign for the housing market is that the economy continues to improve with unemployment dropping below 6% for the first time since 2008, although the underemployment rate is still high at 11.8% and hourly earnings increased only 2% year over year. The latter numbers suggest that the Federal Reserve will not be rushing to raise interest rates, which is good news for mortgage rates. (more…)
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