Melrose Home Sales Slip In January

Year-over-year sales of single-family homes in Melrose were down more than 31 percent in January, while Massachusetts saw an 3 percent increase in sales, according to the latest figures from The Warren Group.

The slip in home sales comes in the first month after a year that saw compared to 2010.

In January, 11 single-family homes sold in Melrose, compared to 16 that sold in January 2011. (Click through the attached photos to see some of the homes that sold in Melrose in January from our weekly Sold! column, which runs every Thursday at noon.)

Statewide, 2,425 single-family homes sold, up from 2,348 in January 2011.

According The Warren Group's press release, it was the highest January sales volume for single-family homes in Massachusetts since January 2007, which CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr. called "promising" after a decline in sales a month earlier.

"Given low mortgage rates and steady prices, there's hope this year may fare a bit better," Warren said in the press release.

The median sale price for a single-family home in Melrose dipped slightly to $377,900, a 2.5 percent drop from $387,500 in January 2011.

Statewide median sale prices dropped for the fourth consecutive month, down 3.7 percent to $260,000, compared to $270,000 in January 2011. The Warren Group's release said that this is fifth consecutive month that median home prices have remained below $300,000.

"Low prices are bringing buyers to the market," Warren said in the press release. "Recent pending sales data are a hopeful sign for a strong spring market, and the weather this winter is certainly an improvement over 2011."

Melrose condo sales stayed relatively flat year-over-year, with five sold this past January, compared to four in January 2011. Statewide condo sales decreased in January, dropping 4.3 percent to 903 from 944 in January 2011.

The median sale price of condos dropped considerably, to $100,000 this past January, down more than 40 percent from $168,000 in January 2011. The statewide median condo price in January inched up 1 percent to $247,500 from $245,000 in January 2011.