Maine home sales, prices again up by double digits; Portland prices jump $54K in a month
Courtesy / Maine Association of REALTORS
The rolling quarter chart from January through March shows how much home sales and prices have continued to climb.
Strong home buying demand continued across Maine in March, with Realtors reporting 1,313 single-family existing home sales — a sales jump of 16.81% over March 2020.
According to statistics released this week by Maine Listings, the statewide median sales price reached $268,500, an increase of 17.79% compared to March 2020.
The median sales price indicates that half of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less.
“Maine residential real estate sales volume and median sold values showed continued strength during March 2021,” Aaron Bolster, broker and owner of Allied Realty in Skowhegan and president of the Maine Association of Realtors, said in a news release. “The pace in the residential real estate market continues to be rapid.”
Realtors have been reported anecdotes of being blitzed by offers in the first days on the market, and the numbers backed that up.
Houses spent an average of 11 days on the market in March, compared to 48 days in the comparable month last year.
“In this fast-moving market, homes become available for sale and are immediately met with pent-up buyer demand,” said Bolster.
Nation, region
The National Association of Realtors reported a 10.4% nationwide increase compared to the March 2020 statistics. Prices rose 18.4% to reach a national MSP of $334,500.
Regionally, sales in the Northeast jumped 16.9% and the regional median sales price increased 21.4% to $364,800 comparing March 2021 to March 2020.
Counties
In Maine, the median sales price for the first quarter of the year was $256,000, up 14.41% from $223,750 a year earlier.
By county, the median sales price varied dramatically, from $100,000 in Aroostook County to $380,000 in Cumberland County.
There are still six counties where you can buy a house for under $200,000: Aroostook, Franklin, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset and Washington. But, like the rest of Maine, those counties all saw double-digit increases in the sales price.
For the rolling quarter of January through March, Piscataquis County saw the highest increase in sales (73.2%), followed by Franklin (61.1%), Hancock (60.3%) and Washington (58.75%).
York and Androscoggin counties had small increases of just 2.6% and 9.6% respectively. There were slight sales decreases in Cumberland and Sagadahoc counties.
Portland
Portland’s first quarter numbers also included a 37% increase in the number of sales and a 47% decrease in days on market, according to numbers compiled by Benchmark Real Estate, using data from Maine Listings.
Portland’s first-quarter median sales price were 43% higher than 2020
For the one-month period from February to March, Portland’s overall median sales price jumped $54,000, from $460,000 to $514,500.
Greater Portland
In Greater Portland, the first three months of the year brought a 27% increase in median sales price, a 6% increase in number of sales, and a 56% decrease in days on market over 2020.
“Simply put, this is the best seller’s market that Portland has ever seen,” Benchmark’s owner, Tom Landry, said in a news release. “Particularly in the single-family and small multi-family market, we’re routinely seeing 10-20 offers and closing well over asking prices.”
But buyers are struggling, he added.
“Buyers can offer up to 20% over asking, waive inspections and still lose out on the home,” he said.
Looking back to January 2020, the median sales price for Portland’s residential real estate increased an average of 4.46% per month.
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