For the 4 counties followed Cumberland and Sagadahoc posted the best results dropping only 6% and 8% respectively in median prices compared with 2008 figures.  The southernmost  real estate markets of York county lost 14% of their value whilst mid coastal Lincoln county dropped a whopping 17%.  Volume in all 4 counties held strong in 2009 posting similar transaction volumes to those seen in 2008 thanks  to a 2nd half surge resulting from the tax credit and low interest rates.

Despite these price drops home values did stabilize throughout the year. Inventories across the board are currently lower than where they were last year at this time and the median days on market average has dropped in all counties except for Sagadahoc.

Going forward I expect the first half of 2010 to be quite strong as rates remain low and buyers continue to take advantage of the housing tax credit that expires April 3oth.

The complete Maine real estate report can be viewed  at www.mymainepropety.com as well as individual reports on the greater Portland Maine residential markets and the Maine coastal  housing markets.

The month of November marked another great month for the southern ME real estate housing markets, specifically Cumberland and York counties.  Transaction volume was up 44% and 55% respectively whilst median prices month over month continued lower, off 6% and 12%.

Pricing continues to stabilize month over month with little to no price depreciation seen for the past 6 months.   The month of December thus far has been pretty quiet however, but assuming interest rates remain low and that the harsh winter storms don’t hammer us too too badly I believe in the new year we will continue to see strong rebounding of volume and pricing in  all market segments including the single family, condo and multi unit markets.

Inventories for the southern Maine markets are lower than they were a year prior and many individual towns, including Portland Maine even saw  a bit of price appreciation month over month in November.

For more detailed Maine housing statistics and analysi please contact me directly at 207-650-5383 or via email john@greentremaine.com or sign up for a complemantary Maine real estate buyers packet.

Alas January did not post the numbers that anybody who wants  real estate markets to appreciate would like to see.  For the southern Maine real estate markets, specifically York and Cumberland county, transaction volume was down 12% and 41% respectively, with only about 100 residential home transactions occurring in Cumberland County, home to Portland Maine.  Pricing continues to trend downward, but not at an alarming rate.

In Maine coastal real estate markets including Sagadahoc and Lincoln country transaction volume was down at even more alarming rates, 30% and 50% respectively!  Given extremely small sample populations it is hard to discern true pricing patterns but it is safe to say prices are also trending downward.

The month of Janurary was cold, snowy and a tough one for Maine real estate.  Keep an eye out for the Maine Association of Realtors figures that should be released soon.

Thanks for reading,

John

Ending 2008 Cumberland County Maine saw 3060 transactions occur at an average price of 275K. This is down from 3703 at a price of 302K in 2007 representing a volume and pricing drop of 17% and 9% respectively.  Thus the southern Maine real estate markets are not immune to the economic/housing/financial crisis that has rocked this nation although less than a 10% drop is better than most areas in the nation and hopefully with lower interest rates and come spring fever, Maine along with the rest of the country will pull itself out of this mess.

For complete Maine real estate housing data please go to www.mymaineproperty.com

2008 was not such a bad year relative to other markets in the nation. Portland Maine Real Estate saw 406 homes and 247 condos sell. This is down approximately 15% from 2007 transaction volume levels.  The average sold prices for home and condos in Portland Maine were 268K and 225K respectively, whilst the median prices were 227K and 208K.  These prices are off about 8% on average from 2007 figures. Thus the real estate in Southern Maine is holding its own better than many other regions in the nation. For more information and additional housing statistics on Portland Maine, please visit www.PortlandMaineHome.com or www.myMaineProperty.com or contact me directly at john@greentreemaine.com.  Thanks for reading.
Here are a couple year by year graphs for the Home and Condo Markets.

Portland SF Home Average and Median Prices

Portland Condo Average and Median Prices

The month ending October 31st 2008 saw little change from current market trends in the Southern Maine real estate markets..  On average the transaction volume remains down 10% from a year prior and average sold prices are 10-15% off last years numbers.  However on a month over month analysis the average pricing appears to have leveled off.  This past month saw a significant increase in days on market averages for 3 out of the 4 counties followed pointing towards a slow road ahead.  Significant decreases in inventory levels did occur as well this past month as parties traditionally take their homes off the market for the coming winter season.

Maine Housing Statistics:
Sold Properties by County – Sep 08 (Sep 07) (% Change):
         # Sold                          Avg. Price                   Avg. Days on Market 
York                185 (210)(-12%)            262K (286K)(-8%)              137 (152) (-10%)
Cumberland      259 (280)(-8%)             269K (312K)(-14%)              119 (91) (31%)
Sagadahoc       36 (35)(3%)                   212K (236K)(-10%)               114(97) (18%)
Lincoln             32 (44)(-27%)               300K (286K) (5%)             215 (192) (12%)
Thanks for reading about real estate in Southern Maine