Massachusetts home and condo sales hit new records in April and for the first time, the median single-family home price surpassed $500,000.
After home sales plunged in the second quarter of 2020 due to COVID uncertainties, activity in the state’s single-family home and condo market showed no signs of slowing down last month, according to the Warren Group’s April Massachusetts Sales Report.
Single-family home sales in April saw a 21.1% increase from April 2020, with 4,517 sales, up from 3,729 transactions the year prior. Last month the median single-family sale price surged 21.1% to $508,000, up from $430,000 last year and up 32.6% from April 2019. April’s median price represents its first time over $500,000 in the report’s history.
The report accounted for the impact of COVID, last year’s lockdown and economic uncertainties, according to Warren Group CEO Tim Warren.
“To get a more apples-to-apples comparison, we took a look at activity to 2019. Sales were up 5.2 percent from April 2019,” Warren said in a press release. “Furthermore the 4,517 single-family homes sold is an all-time record for the month of April. Even more impressive were the gains in median price, gaining 18.1% from 2020 and 32.6% from 2019. The amazing fact of the matter is that the monthly media price has not declined in any month in the past five years, not even during the darkest days of the pandemic.”
Condo sales also surged last month, with 2,530 sales representing a 55.9% increase from April 2020. Condo sales were up 27.3% from April 2019. The median sale price in April saw a 12.3% increase from last year to a new all-time high of $475,000 according to the report. That marks the 10th consecutive month the median condo price was more than $400,000.
“Regardless of which year you compare it to, the Massachusetts condo market was red hot in April 2021,” Warren said. “The Greater Boston condo market is definitely back, and for good reason. There’s a clearly-defined reopening schedule for the city, which will help spur activity in population centers that were very unappealing to prospective buyers just a year ago.”