April 23, 2019
Tight supply puts crimp on home sales in March
By Staff
Sales of Maine’s existing-single-family homes fell slightly in March, with 1,120 homes changing hands — 36 fewer than a year ago.
The Maine Association of Realtors reported that the median sales price of $210,000 was also down from a year earlier, when it was $212,000, a 0.94% decline.
Of Maine’s 16 counties, Piscataquis County posted the highest percentage increase in year-over-year home sales for the month, a 30.29% jump, with 56 homes sold in March 2019, compared to 43 the previous March. Knox County posted the highest percentage increase in median sales price for the same period, with a 15.93% increase from the average price of $199,250 in March 2018 to $231,000 in March 2019.
“For the fourth consecutive month, residential sales volume has shown decreases compared to figures from a year ago, but are the third highest March sales volume during the 17 years we’ve been collecting data,” Peter Harrington, president of the Maine Association of Realtors and broker/partner with Malone Commercial Brokers in Portland, said in a news release. “Typically, with a decline in the number of sales, we’d see an increase in the for-sale inventory, but that’s not the case this month with sales down 3% and for-sale inventory down 5.5%. Buyers are in the marketplace, but may not be finding the home that meets their needs due to the tight supply.”
National and regional trends
The National Association of Realtors released statistics showing a 4.7% decrease in sales nationwide for single-family existing homes, and an increase of 3.8% in the national media sales price, to $261,100 comparing March 2019 to March 2018.
Home sales in the Northeast were down 1.5% and the regional median sales price rose 2.5% to $277,500 over that same time period.
“Economic conditions remain favorable with attractive mortgage rates, plus high consumer confidence and job security,” Harrington said.
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