Home sales spike in Greater Boston despite volatile mortgage rates and market uncertainty

Inventory is up, properties are taking a little bit longer to find a buyer, and shoppers are seeing fewer bidding wars.

The median sales prices for single-family homes and condos broke records for the month of October. Jon Gorey

November 20, 2024

The median sales prices for condos and single-family homes in Greater Boston broke records for the month of October, and buyers were “lured back into the market” by an influx of new listings and lower mortgage rates, according to a report the Greater Boston Association of Realtors released Tuesday.

The median sales price for a single-family home was $855,000, a 3 percent year-over-year increase, while the cost of a condo hit $700,000, a 0.7 percent jump. These stats are far from the skyrocketing home prices that inched toward the $1 million mark in June.

In a bit of relief for frustrated buyers, the active inventory of homes for sale climbed more than 21 percent in both categories.

“Since mid-summer, there’s been a growing reluctance on the part of buyers to move forward, with many holding off on a home purchase due to affordability concerns and feelings of uncertainty about the outcome of the presidential election,” said Jared Wilk, GBAR president and a broker with Compass in Wellesley. “However, there was a sharp but short-lived spike in activity after the Labor Day Weekend, as mortgage rates fell below 6.5 percent to help boost purchasing power, and inventory also rose sharply, triggering a much larger-than-expected number of sales closings in October.”

The number of closed sales was up nearly 3.8 percent for condos and 12 percent for single-family properties despite mortgage rates that remained volatile.

But as inventory rachets up, competition typically winds down, as buyers have more properties from which to choose. Demand is still outpacing the number of listings, however. A healthy market has at least a five-month supply of inventory. Last month, the single-family market had only 1.9 months’ worth of properties on the market, but the condo sector had 3.1 percent.

More on home buying

“With the peak selling season over, it’s not surprising that inventory has started to build,” Wilk said. “Buyers no longer feel the same sense of urgency to pull the trigger on a property, and many seem intent on waiting for mortgage rates or prices to drop before making a move. As a result, we’re seeing fewer multiple-offer situations, more price adjustments, and longer listing times before properties go under agreement.”

“Today, we find its mostly properties that are priced fairly and in excellent condition that are selling for their full asking price,” he added.

Single-family listings were spending slightly longer on the market than they did in October 2023 (20 days compared to 19.5), while condos were taking 23 days on average to sell. That’s three days longer.

“Buyers have more listings to choose from now than they did this summer, and that’s helped to relieve some of the upward pressure on prices, while also creating more opportunity for negotiation,” Wilk said. “In many communities, prices have stabilized with little to no appreciation … over the past 12 months. In fact, the market has become moderately more affordable as prices for homes and condos are down 10 percent and 6 percent, respectively, since peaking earlier this summer.”

The Mass. market

In a report the Warren Group released Tuesday, the state market overall saw an 11.6 percent year-over-year jump in sales of single-family homes and a 5.6 increase in condo buys.

Meanwhile, prices in both categories broke monthly records. The median sales price for a condo hit $511,000, a 2.2 percent year-over-year increase, while the cost of a single-family home reached $615,000, a 6.9 percent jump.

“October’s single-family home sales in Massachusetts showed a modest year-over-year increase in volume, signaling a slight rebound in activity despite the challenging market conditions,” said Cassidy Norton, associate publisher and media relations director of the real estate analytics firm. “However, sales remain significantly below historical norms due to persistently limited inventory and elevated mortgage rates. … The average mortgage interest rate
dropped to the lowest level so far this year in September; homes put under agreement then closed in October. This likely contributed to the rise in the number of sales as buyers took advantage of the brief relief in interest rates. This combination of constrained supply and strong demand continues to
push prices higher, even as buyers navigate affordability challenges.”

The firm’s drilldown into sales by county indicates that the median sales price for a single-family home rose everywhere but in Berkshire (⬇️ 9.6), Dukes (⬇️ 14.4), and Suffolk (⬇️ 0.6) counties.

The median sale prices for condos dropped in Franklin (⬇️ 38.3), Hampshire (⬇️ 14.9), Middlesex (⬇️ 2.3), and Nantucket (⬇️ 45.3) counties, but the latter is based on only 17 sales, which can skew the results. That said, the median sales price in Berkshire County was $582,500, a whopping 76.5 percent year-over-year increase based on 126 closings.

The firm’s drilldown by community finds the median sales price for a single-family home up nearly 25 percent in Ashland to $662,550, and the median cost of a condo down 5.3 percent in Cambridge to $800,000 even.