BOSTON – Single-family home sales declined in February when compared to the same month last year, according to two sets of data released on Tuesday by the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and the Warren Group.
The Realtors noted a 12.5 percent decline in the number of single-family homes sold last month in Massachusetts; the group said 1,647 detached single-family homes sold in February, as compared to 1,883 homes sold the same month last year.
Month-to-month, home sales dropped 23.3 percent, an expected decrease since single-family sales typically fall from January to February, Realtors said.
The Warren Group said single-family homes sales dropped 15.7 percent last month, marking the lowest number of sales for February since the group began tracking data in 1987. Sales dropped to 1,746 from 2,072 as seen in February 2010.
“The local housing market has hit a bump in the road,” said Timothy M. Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group. “Sales dropped sharply in February and we could see that pattern continue through the spring months ahead.”
The CEO flagged the severe winter weather keeping home shopping to a minimum and an unfavorable comparison in the second quarter, when they will be comparing sales to the “height” of the homebuyer tax credit.
The median selling price also declined, both groups observed. For a single-family home, the median price decreased to $255,000 in February from $270,000 a year earlier, according to the Warren Group. Realtors came in higher, at a median selling price of $270,000 in February, down slightly from $271,900 as seen in February 2010.
Detached single-family homes stayed on the market for an average of 152 days in February, as compared to an average of 137 days in February 2010.
The condominium market also noted declines in February, with unit sales down 17.2 percent from the same month a year earlier, Realtors said; the Warren Group noticed a similar trend, with an 18 percent decrease.
