R.I. home market shows signs of slowing amid strong sales

SINGLE-FAMILY HOME SALES in Rhode Island increased 22 percent in August compared with the same period last year, but pending sales dropped 7 percent, the Rhode Island Association of Realtors reported Friday. / BLOOMBERG NEWS FILE PHOTO/DANIEL ACKER
SINGLE-FAMILY HOME SALES in Rhode Island increased 22 percent in August compared with the same period last year, but pending sales dropped 7 percent, the Rhode Island Association of Realtors reported Friday. / BLOOMBERG NEWS FILE PHOTO/DANIEL ACKER

WARWICK – Rhode Island single-family home sales stayed strong in August, climbing 22 percent compared with the same period last year, the Rhode Island Association of Realtors said Friday.

There were 926 houses sold in August, up from 760 last August. Year-over-year sales have increased in all but one month since last August.

Healthy demand also pushed the median sales price up 10 percent compared with August 2012, the 11th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains.

The median single-family sale price was $225,000 in August, up from $204,850 last year.

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Along with the solid sales there were also signs the market may slow down again. Pending sales in August dropped 7 percent compared with August 2012, possibly as a result of rising interest rates.

“We’re in a good place,” said Rhode Island Association of Realtors President Victoria Doran. “Right now, we’re running on pent-up demand but things will likely begin to moderate a bit. That’s not a bad thing because we don’t want to see another run of unsustainable appreciation which was in no one’s best interest.”

In other areas of the market, condominium sales soared in August, rising 77 percent compared with the same period in 2012. There were 189 condominiums sold last month, up from 107 last August.

The median condominium sale price fell 2 percent to $199,000 in August as the number of distressed condominium sales nearly doubled. The median condominium price last August was $203,000.

In the multi-family market, year-over-year sales slowed 12 percent in August. Last month, 112 multi-unit buildings changed hands compared with 127 in August 2012.

The slower sales volume meant fewer distressed sales, however, and the median multi-family sale price climbed 29 percent year-over-year to $135,500. The median multi-family sale price in August 2012 was $105,000.

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