Home prices in Maine continued to tick up in December, although sales continued to slow.
The statewide median sales price for homes sold last month was $330,000, an 8.9% increase over the price in November 2021, according to figures released Friday by the Maine Association of Realtors. December was the fourth consecutive month with a single-digit year-over-year price increase after more than two years of double-digit hikes. The median is the price at which half the homes sold for more money and half sold for less.
A total of 1,091 homes in Maine sold last month, a 36.6% decrease from December 2021.
The total number of statewide home sales in 2022 was 16,832, down 17.5% from the previous year. The median sales price for the entire year was $335,000, up 12% over 2021.
“The sales year ended with just over 16,800 homes sold and a median sales price of $335,000 – down 8.5 percent since its peak in June,” says Carmen McPhail, president of the Maine Association of Realtors and associate broker at United Country Lifestyle Properties of Maine, with offices in Lincoln, Bangor and Lubec. “Overall, the numbers reflect the impact of mortgage rate increases, the typical fourth-quarter seasonal slowdown and a continued shortage of for-sale housing inventory.”
In 2022, 13 of Maine’s 16 counties reported double-digit increases in median sales price. The highest median was $491,723 in Cumberland County, up 13% over $434,900 in 2021. The greatest change was in Washington County, where the median increased 31.5% from $163,500 in 2021 to $215,000 in 2022.
Aroostook County saw a 24% increase from 2021 to 2022, but the median price of $143,000 remains the lowest in the state.
Every county reported a decrease in the number of units sold from 2021 to 2022.
“We’re seeing a bit of a pause as buyers and sellers are adjusting their expectations due to today’s less-favorable financing terms compared to mid-2022,” said McPhail. “As we move through 2023, we expect would-be buyers to re-engage with the market and the demand for residential real estate to remain high. Conditions are favorable for a gradual balancing of the real estate market.”
The Associated Press reported similar trends across the country. The National Association of Realtors said Friday that existing home sales declined 17.8% from 2021 to 2022. This was the weakest year for home sales since 2014. At the same time, the median home price for all of last year jumped to $386,300. That’s an increase of 10.2% from 2021 and 42% since 2019.
“So, homeowners have done well during this housing (market) from 2019 through COVID until now,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. “The one big negative for home sales is home prices, which have risen dramatically, much faster than peoples’ income.”
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