BY THOMAS GRILLO
LYNN — Home sales in Lynn continued to outshine other North Shore communities in May as volume and prices rose, according to The Warren Group, the Boston real estate tracker.
A total of 231 single-family homes sold in the city from January through May, compared to 172 for the same period last year, a 34 percent hike. As sales increased, buyers dug deeper into their pockets. The median price for a single-family home in Lynn swelled to $270,000 in the first five months of the year compared to $249,450, an 8 percent rise.
“These new buyers are priced out of East Boston, Revere and Everett and are coming to Lynn where it’s much more affordable,” said William McClory, a broker at Clements Realty Group in Lynn. “A lot of them have never been to Lynn before, but now they’re giving us a look.”
Lynn had the best May, in terms of sales volume, since 2001. But median prices are still down from the peak of February of 2006, when it reached $300,000.
Among North Shore communities, Peabody, Revere and Saugus also did well.
In Saugus, 100 homes sold from January through May. That’s up from 86 last year, a 16 percent increase. Saugus prices also rose. The median reached $370,000 for the first five months of the year, up from $325,000, a 14 percent hike. Revere home sales increased 48 percent. Single-family median prices increased to $261,954 from $257,000 for the same period in 2015, a 2 percent rise.
Peabody home sales and prices also saw increases. There were 131 single-family homes sold this year compared to 118 last year, an 11 percent increase. Prices were up by 3 percent to $375,000 from $362,500 a year ago.
“There’s a little bit more consumer confidence, and given the low mortgage interest rates, people don’t mind paying a little more for the property,” said Anita Horowitz, a broker at Re/Max Advantage Real Estate in Peabody.
Marblehead, Nahant and Swampscott didn’t fare so well.
In Marblehead, home sales slipped by 5 percent to 83 this year, down from 87 last year. Median prices were off by 1 percent to $549,000, down from $554,000 a year ago.
In Swampscott, sales were flat at 58, while median prices fell by 2 percent this year to $444,950.
Nahant single-family sales dipped by 46 percent and prices were off by 9 percent.
In Lynnfield, it was mixed. Year-to-date sales were off by 20 percent. But prices continued to rise as the median for a single-family home swelled to $585,000, a 7 percent hike over $545,000 a year ago.
Thomas Grillo can be reached at [email protected].
