Mass. Condos, Houses Taking Longer to Sell at Lower Prices

There was this rather striking stat within the latest Massachusetts Association of Realtors' monthly report:

Detached single-family homes stayed on the market an average of 128 days in January 2012 compared to an average of 120 days in January 2011. Condos stayed on the market an average of 130 days, up from an average of 127 days in January 2011. On a month-to-month basis, days on market for single-family homes were up from 119 days in December while condos were up from 122 days. It's taking longer to sell condos and single-families, in other words, even as the economy recovers and prices have dropped. Indeed, the median single-family sales price in January was $265K, down 5 percent from the same month last year and the fourth straight annual decrease. For condos, the median sales price was flat at around $247K, though down from December (as was the single-family median).

The bright side? Single-family home sales were up annually again. They're still not, however, near where they were during the boom (which may not have been as boom-y as a lot of people think anyway).

· Is Boston's Housing Market Just ... Normal? [Curbed Boston]