Sales of existing single-family homes in Maine eased slightly in February from a year earlier, while prices edged a bit higher.
February home sales in Maine were down by 0.5 percent from a year earlier, according to a report issued Friday by the Maine Association of Realtors.
The statewide median home sale price of $200,000 was up about 3 percent from February 2018. The median indicates that half of homes sold for more money and half sold for less.
Peter Harrington, president of the association and broker/partner with Malone Commercial Brokers in Portland, said there are signs that Maine’s housing market activity is leveling off.
“Conversations with Realtors across Maine and a review of the statistics indicate that we may be shifting to a more balanced real estate market,” Harrington said in a statement. “Sales volume over the past few months has shown decreases compared to figures from a year ago. However, for-sale inventory continues to be tight – 4 percent lower than February of 2018.”
Statewide home sales for the three-month period ending Feb. 28 were down 10 percent from the same period a year earlier, the association reported. The median home sale price for the three-month period rose by 5 percent from a year earlier to $210,000.
The biggest sales increase for the three-month period was 22 percent in Somerset County, while the biggest decrease was 22 percent in Aroostook County. Fourteen of Maine’s 16 counties experienced decreases in home sales compared with the same period a year earlier.
The biggest increase in median sale price was 15 percent in Sagadahoc County, which rose to $229,000, while the biggest price decrease was 13 percent, which fell to $155,000, in Kennebec County.
Home sales across the country were down by 1.4 percent in February from a year earlier, while the national median sale price of $251,400 represented a 3.6 percent increase, the National Association of Realtors reported.
Sales in the Northeast region increased by 1.5 percent in February, and the median sale price rose by 3.8 percent to $272,900, it said.
J. Craig Anderson can be contacted at 791-6390 or at:
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