RESIDENTIAL & VACANT LAND SALES SUMMARY
RESIDENTIAL SALES ACTIVITY: 2017 v. 2016 & 5-YEAR AVERAGE
Drop In <$1 Million Home Sales, Rise In $2 Million to $3 Million
Single-family home sales (excluding condos, multi-family homes, co-ops & Nantucket covenant properties) rose 4 percent ahead of last year while dollar volume improved by 11 percent. A total of 271 homes sold through October 31, 2017, the second highest total during this same period within the last 10 years (291 homes in 2014).
In reviewing 2017 sales by price point against the 5-year average, the sub-$1 million price point saw the most significant decline (down nine percentage points of total transaction activity) while homes priced between $2 million to $3 million saw the biggest rise (four percentage points). All other price points remained stable.
The median home sale price rose 11 percent from one year ago while strong demand drove the average marketing time down to 6.9 months. The average sale price to the last list price remained steady, while inventory levels dropped 11 percent.
VACANT LAND SALES SUMMARY
Lowest Number Of Vacant Land Sales In Five Years
As compared to the five-year average, the number of vacant land sales declined nearly 30 percent through October 31, 2017, largely due to limited inventory (just 57 lots for sale at month’s end). Vacant land inventory has simply diminished, resulting in two years in a row of modest transaction activity. This compares to the same 10-month period in 2013-2015 which saw between 74-87 land transactions.
The median selling price of land declined 12 percent as this year’s activity has so far included far fewer sales above $1 million as compared to one year ago (12 lots vs 24 lots). Despite lower inventory, the marketing time rose nearly 45 days to average 10.7 months during the period, suggesting the land that is available may not be as appealing as in previous years.