MetroWest home sales slipped in October

(Foto: Courtesy of MAPC) Marlborough was one of the communities in MetroWest that bucked the latest trend and continued a growth in year-over-year home sales in October.

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By Sam Bonacci

Home sales throughout MetroWest slipped in October, following a statewide trend that marked only the second time this year that sales did not grow over the previous year's numbers, according to The Warren Group.

Sales of single-family homes located in Middlesex County saw a 5.3 percent decline. This followed a statewide 4.4 percent decline in sales, with 4,913 single-family homes sold in Massachusetts in October, compared to 5,138 in October 2015. This marks the second time in 2016 when the number of homes sold declined from the same month in the previous year.

Some communities did better than others in terms of sales, with Natick declining 36.7 percent to 19 homes in October, Holliston down 35.7 percent to nine homes sold, and Shrewsbury down 25 percent to 33 sales.

Some municipalities in the area bucked the trend and even saw a boost to sales, with Framingham up 16.7 percent to 56 sales, Marlborough’s sales growing 59.1 percent to 35 in the month, Sudbury up 41.2 percent with 24 sales, and Westborough up 20 percent with 12 homes sold in October.

Homes that did sell, however, enjoyed a 3.7 percent year-over-year price increase across the state, a 2 percent price increase in Worcester County and a 3.3 percent increase in Middlesex County.

This cooling of the market in the second half of the year is in contrast to a hot housing market in the beginning of the year, according to Timothy Warren, CEO of The Warren Group.

"It is still too early to tell if demand has waned or whether low inventory leaves prospective homebuyers with too few choices. With interest rates expected to rise before year-end, we may see a steady, but not booming market this winter," Warren said in a statement.

Housing sales are still up year to date for the state (10.8 percent) as well as in Worcester County (13.6 percent) and Middlesex County (5 percent).