Massachusetts Home Buyer Guide

Massachusetts Home Sales Plunge in August 2010

Sales of Massachusetts single-family homes in August declined to their lowest level in more than two decades while the median price increased slightly, The Warren Group reported September 28, 2010.

A total of 3,659 single-family homes sold in Massachusetts in August 2010, an 18.5 percent drop from 4,492 sales in August 2009. It represented the second consecutive month of year-over-year sales declines, and the first time sales have fallen below 4,000 in the month of August since The Warren Group began tracking data in 1987. Prior to last month, the lowest number of single-family home sales tracked in August was 4,100 in 1990.

Sales of single-family homes edged up from a month ago, when there were 3,590 sales of single-family homes. Year-to-date sales climbed 9.35 percent to 28,567, up from 26,124 a year ago.

Year-to-date sales were up in every county, but sales were boosted in the first half of the year by the federal government's home buyer tax credit.

The median price of single-family homes crept up 3.9 percent to $315,000 in August, up from $303,000 a year earlier. Median prices of single-family homes in Massachusetts dropped from a month ago, when the median price was $320,000. August marked the third straight month of the year that the median price exceeded $300,000. The median price for homes sold January through August was $300,000, up almost 5.26 percent from $285,000 in the prior year.

In August, Massachusetts condominium sales also dropped, declining 23.3 percent from a year earlier. A total of 1,620 condos sold in August, down from 2,113 a year ago.

Year-to-date condo sales were up 9 percent, increasing to 12,830 from 11,764 during the same period last year.

Condo sales increased slightly from a month earlier, when 1,482 condos sold in Massachusetts.

The median condo price also increased in August. The median selling price was $298,500, up 8.5 percent from $275,000 a year earlier. The year-to-date median price of condos in the Bay State is $266,000, up 3.5 percent from $257,000 a year ago.

Search for all homes for sale in Massachusetts.

Plenty of $5 Million-plus Homes Available in MA

Have you just won the lottery? Maybe a rich uncle has left you a multi-million dollar inheritance or your company had a blockbuster IPO? 

If so, there are plenty of homes on the market in Massachusetts for $5 million or more. As of today (01/03/2010), there are 59 homes on the MLS listed for $5 million or more.

Have some fun and check out some of the $5 million-plus luxury homes on the market.

So What Does $5 Million Plus Get You in MA?

In this battered real estate market, how many single-family homes priced at $5 million or more do you think are on the market in Massachusetts? Maybe five or 10. Certainly no more than 20, right?

Well, there are 70 luxury homes on the market priced for $5 million or more in Massachusetts as of August 29, 2009.

Check out these Massachusetts luxury homes online.

Multi-family Home Sales Surge In Lawrence, MA

Sales of multi-family homes in Lawrence, MA, which have seen prices drop more than 40 percent in just the last year or so, surged during the first nine months of the year, up 351.6 percent from the same period in 2007, The Eagle-Tribune reported December 1, 2008.

According MLS Property Information Network, Inc., there presently are 222 multi-family homes for sale in Lawrence, MA; however, on December 1, 2007 there were 407 multi-family properties on the market, so inventory of multi-family homes is down 45 percent.

Search for Lawrence, MA multi-family homes.

Read The Eagle-Tribune Article.

Low-income, 55+ New Construction Condos Available At Reduced Price In Haverhill, Massachusetts

Community Action, Inc. in Haverhill, MA has applications available for low- to moderate-income residents 55 years old or older to buy new construction condominiums for the reduced price of $209,100 and $220,913.

The two-bedroom condominiums are part of The Fairways development located off Route 108 (Newton Road) in Haverhill.

The maximum allowed annual income for a single person is $54,700. For a two-person household the income limit is $62,600; the three-person household income limit is $70,400; and the four-person income limit is $78,200.

Applications are available at Community Action, Inc., which is located at 145 Essex Street in Haverhill. For more information, you can call Richard Lynch at 978.373.1971.

Units are available for rent starting at $1,295 per month.

If you'd like to see The Fairways, please don't hesitate to contact me at 978.835.5906 or online.

Haverhill, MA Single-family Homes $250K Or Less

Use the following link to find single-family homes in Haverhill, Massachusetts for $250,000 or less. More than 50 properties available as of September 30, 2008.

Search Haverhill, MA homes $250K or less.

Condos For $75K Or Less

According to the MLS, there are more than 240 condominiums for sale in Massachusetts from $25,000 to $75,000.

Many are in the urban areas you might expect and many are pretty small too, but there most certainly are some diamonds in the rough.

Haverhill, MA Single-family Homes $275K Or Less

There are presently more than 80 single-family homes in Haverhill, MA for sale for $275,000 or less. There are several homes in move-in condition in the Riverside and Bradford areas of the city between $250K and $275K.

A few years ago buyers in this price range had only homes that needed a lot of work to choose from. That's not the case today.

Looking For A Condo For Less Than $70K?

This condo on Clinton Street in Haverhill, MA is a short sale and on the market for just $69,900. It has four rooms, two bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms and more than 900 square feet.

Contact me at 978.835.5906, if you'd like me to schedule a showing to check it out.

Multi-family Homes In Boston For Less Than $300K

As of December 21, 2007, there were more than 100 multi-family properties listed on the MLS Property Information Network for sale for less than $300K throughout the City of Boston.

Finding a decent multi-family property at a price that would allow it to be cash-flow positive was next to impossible just a year or so ago, but that is beginning to change.

Check out this three-family property in East Boston for $250K.

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Most Expensive Home For Sale In Andover, MA

The most expensive home for sale in Andover, MA listed on the MLS as of December 5, 2007 was a yet-to-be-built 13-room colonial featuring more than 5,000 square feet, 4.5 bathrooms, a five-car garage and nearly two acres.

This custom-built, new construction home was listed at $3.075 million. The lot is near Phillips Academy. As of December 5, 2007, the home had been on the market for 131 days without a price change.  That isn't unusual for new construction.

Not too shabby!

See more photos.

Find all the single-family home listings in Andover, MA

Find all the condo home listings in Andover, MA

More Than 400 Multi-Family Homes For Sale In Lawrence

With new foreclosed multi-family properties hitting the market in Lawrence, MA regularly, Lawrence has more than 400 multi-family homes, including regular listings, bank-owned properties and short sales, listed on the MLS Property Information Network, Inc. as of today.

Find multi-family homes for sale in Lawrence, Massachusetts.

Check out The Boston Globe's October 7, 2007 special report, including video, on Lawrence's foreclosure crisis.

Lawrence profile from the October 7, 2007 Boston Globe.

Tom Brady As Your Neighbor

Your high school quarterback son need some help reading defenses or spotting the open receiver?

Well, then move in next door to Patriots QB Tom Brady.

The Boston Herald reported (actually using the Boston Globe as a source) September 13, 2007 that Brady is selling two condo units he owns in a Beacon Hill brownstone. The new dad reportedly will keep the top two floors, which have "panoramic views of the Charles River."

As for the units for sale, "The Boston Globe reported Thursday that Brady is selling one unit, with three bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths, for $4.59 million. The other has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and a $3.99 million asking price."

It might seem expensive, but just think of the signing bonus Junior will get after being drafted in the first round.

Read The Boston Herald Article

Andover, MA For Less Than $400K

Looking for a community with good schools, open space and a great downtown?

Andover, Massachusetts has its share of homes listed for $1 million or more, but as of May 5, 2007, it also had 20 single-family homes listed for less than $400K.

Check out the listings and view the photographs of the homes for less than $400K on the MLS Property Information Network.

There are 40 one-, two- and three-bedroom condos for less than $300K in Andover.

Search the entire Massachusetts MLS

What's The Most Expensive Asking Price For A Home For Sale In The Greater Boston Area?

According to the MLS Property Information Network, a Victorian home on Beacon Hill in Boston has the most expensive asking price.

The 9,500 square-foot, 16-room home is presently listed at $16.5 million.

Click here for photographs and a link to a virtual tour of the home.