Bristol County, Mass., home sales rise 4% as prices drop

By Patrick Anderson
PBN Staff Writer

BOSTON – Sales of single-family homes in Bristol County, Mass., rose 4 percent in November, while the median purchase price of those homes fell 4 percent compared with the same period last year, The Warren Group said Wednesday.

The real estate tracking firm said 224 homes sold in the county in November, up from 216 a year ago.

At the same time, the median sales price dropped to $220,000 for the month from $235,000 in November 2010.

The Bristol County figures follow a statewide trend of rising sales and falling prices.

Massachusetts year-over-year sales increased 13 percent in November, the fifth straight month purchase volume beat last year. At the same time, the statewide median sales price dipped 8 percent in November compared with last year to $271,000.

In other areas of the market, year-over-year condominium sales increased 7.6 percent in November compared with 2010, while the median condo sales price declined 1 percent to $259,000.

“I'm hopeful that winding down the year on a positive note will stimulate the market in 2012," said The Warren Group CEO Timothy Warren Jr. "But, a reality check of the numbers shows we may see a record low number of home sales in all of 2011, somewhere near the level in the 1990s.”

Separately, the Massachusetts Association of Realtors - which uses different sources to track home sales than The Warren Group - also reported November statewide single-family home sales increased 13 percent from a year ago.

The Association of Realtors said the median single-family sales price dropped 4 percent for the month compared with a year ago to $284,500.