June Pending Home Sales Increase in Massachusetts

The Massachusetts real estate market likely will show continued sales growth for at least the next few months, according to pending sales data released July 18, 2016 by the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. 

Pending sales of single-family homes increased 6.3 percent statewide in June. There were 6,813 homes under agreement in June compared to 6,407 pending sales in June 2015. The median price for these pending sales increased 2.2 percent to $380,000. Pending sales have increased on a year-over-year basis in 39 of the last 40 months. 

A sale is "pending" when a home is under agreement, which means a buyer and seller have agreed to the terms of the real estate sale and have signed a purchase and sale agreement. Not every pending sale will result in a closed transaction; however, pending sales data is a strong indication of where the real estate market is headed over the next 30 to 90 days.   

Condominium pending sales were down in June for the first time in 15 months. Pending condo sales declined by 10 units (minus 0.4 percent) to 2,507. The median price for those pending transactions increased 6 percent to $349,000.