Central Mass. home sales rebounded in April, as price spikes continue

A home under construction with a piece of construction equipment

Photo | Grant Welker Wachusett Valley Estates off Bullard Street in Holden

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Central Massachusetts saw an increase in the number of single-family homes sold in April when compared to the same month last year, as average sales prices in the region largely continue to climb.

After seeing a decline of transactions in March, Worcester County saw 431 home sales in April, a 7.8% increase from the 400 sales seen in April 2023, while Middlesex County saw 643 home sales in April, a 8.4% increase from the 593 sales seen in April 2023, according to data released on Tuesday by The Warren Group, a Peabody-based real estate research firm.

This increase in sales hasn’t brought prospective home buyers any relief from high prices, as the median sales price in Worcester County rose from $416,000 to $450,000, a 8.2% increase. Middlesex County saw a significant hike in its median sales price, as it rose from $732,000 to $850,000, a 16.1% climb.

Across Massachusetts, 3,100 single-family home were sold in April, a 6.8% percent increase over April 2023.

“The number of single-family homes sold in Massachusetts increasing by such a large percent over the year prior is a positive sign for both buyers and sellers,” Cassidy Norton, associate publisher and media relations director of The Warren Group, said in a Tuesday press release accompanying the data release. “The market has been exceedingly tight in recent years as mortgage rates and building costs rose.”

While Worcester County saw an increase in total sales, the city of Worcester saw a slight decline, as 62 homes were sold in the city, a 8.8% decrease from the 68 sales seen in April 2023. Like many other Central Massachusetts municipalities, the median sale price in Worcester continues to rise, climbing 7% from $388,000 to $415,000.

A similar trend was seen in Leominster, where both the number of sales and the median price saw an uptick; the city saw 18 home sales compared to 16 in April 2023, as the median price rose 2.4% from $372,500 to $381,500.

Fitchburg saw a decline in total sales, dropping from 22 in April last year to 19 in April 2024, with the median price climbing from $349,500 to $440,000, a 25.9% increase.

The total amount of sales and median prices were on the rise in prominent MetroWest communities; Framingham saw 29 sales compared to 25 in April 2023, while Natick saw 27 sales compared to 17. Both communities saw an increase in median prices; Framingham’s median price climbed 15.9%, from $565,000 to $655,000, while Natick’s median price climbed 31.9% from $730,000 to $895,000.