As the residential real estate downturn closes in on its one-year anniversary, local home prices fell for a 10th straight month, according to data released Wednesday.
Median sale prices — the point at which half of homes sold for more and half for less — in Baltimore City and its five surrounding counties fell 1.75 percent in August to $275,000 from $279,900, according to data from the Realtor-owned Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc.
But not every jurisdiction faces tough times. Year-over-year median sale prices in Baltimore City increased for a third straight month to $159,900 from $154,900, according to the data. Those prices climbed 5.88 percent in July and 8.33 percent in June.
The increases in price haven’t been because of volume, however. The number of units sold in the city was down 35 percent last month to 430 from 662 a year ago. Sales volume declined 36 percent in July and 39 percent in June.
“I don’t think anyone would argue houses are worth more or that people are getting more for their money,” said Marc Witman, a partner at Baltimore-based broker Yerman Witman Gaines & Conklin. “I think it may be a statistical anomaly, because of more expensive houses getting sold in the city.”
In fact, in August, 13 homes closed between $600,000 and $800,000 in Baltimore City, the highest number since 15 closed in the city in June 2007, said Ross Mackesey, sales manager at Coldwell Banker Federal Hill.
“That probably means less expensive mortgages are starting to have a positive impact,” Mackesey said.
In the metro area, only Harford County showed an increase in median sale prices, to $273,000 from $265,000 a year ago. Howard County saw the smallest decrease in sales volume, down just 9.54 percent from last August.
“Howard County is as much Washington, D.C., as it is Baltimore-connected,” Mackesey said. “Northern Virginia and D.C. started their recovery before we did, because it’s a stronger employment growth area.”
Howard County is also the third-richest county in the nation, with more than half of its households earning more than $101,672 a year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2007 American Community Survey.
The number of days on market also increased, to 115 days from 84 a year ago, a 36 percent increase.
The days of such large percentage swings may be drawing to a close, however. Real estate watchers said MRIS data from this month or October may suddenly show a flat percentage change as the numbers “catch up” to the lower figures of last year’s difficult market.
Real estate sales by county
| median sale price August 2008 |
median sale price August 2007 |
percent change |
total sold 2008 |
total sold 2007 |
percent change |
|
| Anne Arundel | $325,000 | $335,000 | -2.99 | 433 | 594 | -27.10 |
| Baltimore City | $159,900 | $154,900 | 3.23 | 430 | 662 | -35.05 |
| Baltimore | $250,000 | $265,000 | -5.66 | 577 | 842 | -31.47 |
| Carroll | $325,000 | $345,980 | -5.80 | 106 | 171 | -38.01 |
| Harford | $273,000 | $265,000 | 3.02 | 226 | 295 | -23.39 |
| Howard | $400,000 | $430,000 | -6.98 | 275 | 304 | -9.54 |
| Average | $275,000 | $279,900 | -1.75 | 2,047 | 2,868 | -28.63 |
Source: Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc.
