AUGUSTA (February 21, 2020)—Sales of Maine’s single-family existing homes increased dramatically last month. Maine Listings reported a 26.76 percent rise in sales this January when compared to statistics from January 2019. The statewide median sales price (MSP) jumped 10.45 percent to $220,900. The MSP indicates that half of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less.

“After a record-breaking 2019, the new year 2020 continued that strong momentum with the highest number of January sales (1,061) since we began keeping statistics 20 years ago,” says Tom Cole, 2020 President of the Maine Association of REALTORS and Managing Broker of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate The Masiello Group in Brunswick. “We’re continuing to experience low supply and high demand, with buyers ready to purchase—and waiting for homes to come onto the market.”

Nationally, single-family existing home sales increased 9.7 percent comparing January 2020 to January 2019, and the national MSP rose 6.9 percent to $268,600. Sales in the regional Northeast were up 7.4 percent, and the regional MSP jumped 11.5 percent to $312,100 comparing January 2020 to January 2019.

“Transactions in Maine are brisk, with days on market down 32 percent compared to January of 2019. This equals a statewide median of 43 days,” says Cole. “Rely on a REALTOR for guidance to assist with buying or selling strategies to have the best results in these strong markets.”

Below are two charts showing statistics for Maine and its 16 counties. The first chart lists statistics for the month of January 2020 and 2019 only, statewide. The second chart compares the number of existing, single-family homes sold (units) and volume (MSP) during the rolling quarter of November, December (‘18/’19) and January (‘19/’20).