Wealthy towns face slower market, some better than others
A week or so ago, I read a comment in some blog about how $1,000,000+ sales had dropped off in some of the tonier (hate that word) towns across the Commonwealth. Or, more accurately, the comment was that there was a glut of $1,000,000+ single-family homes on the market, when you compared them to number of sales.
So, I did some research.
Here is a break-down of data from MLSPIN covering 01/01 - 03/31 for the years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008. And, current inventory, all listings greater than $1,000,000. And, months of inventory available, based on the number of sales during the past 30 days.
Typically, the average time on market for homes in all price ranges is between 5-8 months. Million dollar-plus homes have historically sold more slowly than other price ranges.
As you can see, though, some towns seem to have a glut.
There’s probably more to this story than meets the eye. Why, for example, would there be 26 million dollar-plus homes on the market today, in Andover, when during the past four years, only six or seven homes sold, all year? Is the supply due to new construction? Is it owners in duress? Is it owners testing out the market?
| Town | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | current inventory | sold last 30 days | months of inventory |
| Andover | 6 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 26 | 1 | 26 months |
| Boxford | 4 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 19 | 2 | 9.5 months |
| Brookline | 13 | 16 | 18 | 12 | 43 | 9 | 4.7 months |
| Dover | 8 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 45 | 2 | 22.5 months |
| Cambridge | 10 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 20 | 3 | 6.66 months |
| Carlisle | 4 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 13 months |
| Concord | 8 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 40 | 2 | 20 months |
| Lexington | 11 | 9 | 15 | 12 | 64 | 7 | 9 months |
| Lincoln | 6 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 9 months |
| Manchester | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 26 months |
| Wellesley | 25 | 33 | 33 | 27 | 82 | 10 | 8.2 months |
| Weston | 28 | 5 | 17 | 14 | 72 | 3 | 24 months |
| Total | 124 | 116 | 130 | 96 | 459 |
Source: Based on information provided to and compiled by the Multiple Listing Service Property Information Network, Inc. covering the first-quarter, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.
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