MA home price rise likely; Franklin, MA real estate among best

Massachusetts real estate looks poised for another round of strong price appreciation in coming years according to The Greater Boston Housing Report Card 2009. Released earlier this week by a respected policy center at Northeastern University, the Report Card also ranked the Town of Franklin as having one of the best-performing local real estate markets in the Commonwealth during the first half of 2009.

The Greater Boston Housing Report Card 2009 is a 116 page report on the current status and future prospects of housing in Massachusetts. It is released annually by The Kitty and Michael Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy of Northeastern University.

Lack of affordable housing

The 2009 Report Card devotes considerable attention to the lack of affordable housing in Massachusetts. The entrenched imbalance between demand for affordable single family housing and the strikingly low production of such units in the Commonwealth over the last few years stands as the greatest single obstacle to the long term vitality of the MA economy according to the authors of the Report Card.

A statement of keen interest to all current Massachusetts homeowners and prospective MA home buyers appears in the executive summary section of the Report Card:

Affordable new home construction remains sharply curtailed

The statement above sets forth a fundamental reality of MA real estate we all will be dealing with over the next decade: unless a substantial number of new single family housing units are built throughout Massachusetts, any significant economic recovery will likely ignite another round of home price appreciation in coming years.

This prospect should be weighed very carefully by all home buyers planning to purchase a home in Massachusetts.

Because the permitting of a large number of new construction single family homes at affordable prices seems highly improbable in the current political climate in this state, you may want to expedite your purchase plans while home prices are low.

Note that Boston area prices are already 6.9% higher than they were at market bottom last March.

Franklin MA real estate strong

The Report Card also found that the Town of Franklin has one of the best-performing real estate markets in the Commonwealth in 2009.

The Report Card states that Franklin median home sale prices rose 15% in the first half of 2009 compared to the same period last year. This puts Franklin as one of the relatively few MA communities enjoying home price appreciation in 2009.

The above chart shows how Franklin compares with other municipalities in the southern Route 495 region in 2009.

The other communities experiencing double-digit median price gains in the first half of 2009 included: Dunstable (15%); Groton (10%); Middleton (26%); Nahant (14%); Natick (11%); Rowley (10%); and Whitman (12%).

Half-year statistics misleading?

Caution and a liberal dose of salt are needed with 6 month median price statistics compiled on a municipal basis.

The samples are obviously small which leads to potential distortions of results. We might do better to wait until the end of 2009 to get a more reliable picture of how Franklin home prices have fared this year. You’ll likely find a more accurate picture of all municipal housing markets by looking at annual home price performance figures when they become available.

October home sales in Franklin, MA

Below are the top 4 and bottom 4 home sales in Franklin in October 2009:

Franklin highly popular with home buyers

The high sale prices shown in the October sales chart and the first half 2009 median price results in the Report Card do amply demonstrate how favorably home buyers view the Town of Franklin, MA.

Franklin, Massachusetts offers the fine schools and wonderful quality of life so sought after by home buyers!