Connecticut home sales rebounded in 2012 to their best in three years, but prices remained stuck in the mud, a new tally shows.
Sales of single-family homes rose 14.8 percent to 24,276 in 2012, up from 21,141 in 2011, The Warren Group in Boston says. In 2009, there were 24,401 sales.
Fourth quarter numbers were also up 19 percent year-over-year, rising to 5,905 single-family sales compared to 4,961 in the fourth quarter of 2011, Warren said. Sales volume was highest in the third quarter 2012, when there were 7,266 sales.
Single-family home sales in Connecticut rose in every month in 2012. This is a stark contrast to 2011, when year-over-year sales volume only increased in two months.
“The market in Connecticut showed much improvement in 2012, compared to the previous year when we saw record lows for sales,” said Warren Group CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr. “An improved employment picture and consumer confidence boosted the housing market in 2012, and prices will slowly follow suit.”
The median price for Connecticut single-family homes sold in 2012 was $240,000, a 1.2 percent drop from $243,000 in 2011. This is the lowest median price since 2003, when the recorded price was $231,750.
However, by yearend, a bright sign for prices had emerged. The median price for single-family homes sold during the fourth quarter rose more than 6 percent to $240,000, up from $225,000 in the fourth quarter 2011.
“Prices have increased for three consecutive months, which is a promising sign for steady growth in 2013,” Warren said.
Condominium sales in Connecticut also increased in 2012. A total of 6,111 condominiums were sold last year, a 7 percent increase from 2011 when 5,704 sales were recorded. Fourth quarter condo sales also rose 7 percent to 1,467 from the 1,370 recorded during the same time in 2011.
Condo median prices also decreased in 2012. The median price decreased almost 5 percent to $163,000, down from $171,000 in 2011. The median sales price of condos in December increased, however, by almost 3 percent to $171,900, from $167,000 during December 2011.
Condo median prices jumped 5 percent in the fourth quarter to $169,900, up from $161,750 in the fourth quarter 2011.
