SOUTH PORTLAND (March 21, 2012) — Buyers of single-family existing homes in Maine showed up in increasing numbers last month, leading to double-digit sales gains. According to the Maine Real Estate Information System, Inc., 624 homes sold in February 2012, a sales increase of 29.46 percent compared with
February 2011. The median sales price (MSP) decreased 5.99 percent to $149,900 in that same time period. The MSP indicates that half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
The National Association of Realtors reports a 9.4 percent increase in existing home sales nationwide. The national MSP rose 0.1 percent to $157,100 in February. Regionally, the Northeast experienced a 5.5 percent increase in sales, while the regional MSP dipped 1.9 percent to $225,800.
Tina Lucas of Lucas Real Estate in Portland relays, “The steady increase in the number of homes sold is a reflection of several factors: the rise in consumer confidence, continued historic low interest rates and, in the last quarter, an unusually mild Maine winter.” Lucas, who serves as the President of the Maine Association of Realtors, adds, “With little snow cover and mild temperatures, the ‘hibernation factor’ did not have an opportunity to develop.
We are seeing steady sales across the price spectrum with brisk activity in the first-time home buyer market, multi-family properties and the luxury home market with high end homes attractively priced. Investors are viewing real estate as a safe haven. Buyers across the board who are ready, willing and able to get into the market are recognizing the door may soon be closing on the current pricing, as the inventory continues to shrink.”
Below are two charts showing statistics for Maine and its 16 counties. The first chart lists statistics for the month of February only, statewide. The second chart compares the number of existing, single-family homes sold (units) and volume (MSP) during the months of December 2010 and 2011 and January and February of 2011 and 2012.
