The monthly median selling price for single-family homes in the Boston area reached a record high in April of $950,000, according to data from the Greater Boston Association of Realtors (GBAR). This represented a 16.2% year-over-year spike from the median of $817,250 in April 2023 and a 5.5% increase from the $900,500 in March.
The previous record high price for single-family homes in this market was $910,000 in July 2023.
The upward price movement eluded Boston’s condominium market, where the median sales price dropped year-over-year by 1.4% to $700,000 – the price was $710,000 in April 2023. On a monthly measurement, the median selling price was $740,000.
“Even though inventory is at its highest level since last October, we still don’t have nearly the number of listings needed to meet buyer demand, and that’s allowed prices to remain at or near record highs,” said GBAR President Jared Wilk, a broker with Compass in Wellesley. “Inventory is especially tight in the single-family home market, where the supply of listings is about 25% less than that for condos, which is why prices for these properties have been appreciating more rapidly over the first four months of the year.”
During April, sales of single-family homes in Boston were up 12.3% from 682 homes sold in April 2023 to 766 homes sold last month. This marks the third time in the first four months of 2024 that home sales were up from one year earlier, and it is also the largest percentage increase in monthly home sales since June 2021. However, last month’s sales volume was also the fifth lowest April sales total in the last 20 years.
In the condominium market, sales increased on an annual basis by 7.3% from 711 units sold last April 2023 to 763 in last month. This is the largest annual percentage gain in condo sales since November 2021, although it is also the eighth lowest of any April over the past 20 years.
“It’s been slow going for the last of couple of years, but we’ve started to see signs of a modest market rebound in the early part of this year,” said Wilk. “The softening in mortgage rates that occurred in the first two months of the year has helped to boost buyer optimism and spur activity, making it feel like a more normal spring market. On top of that, listings for single-family homes and condos are at their highest level in six months, which is providing buyers more choice and room for negotiation when entering the market.”
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