The median price of a single-family home in New Hampshire took a giant leap in June, reaching a record-breaking $495,000, a precedent shattering increase over the previous high-water mark of $465,000 set in May.
Market conditions of squeezed inventory and continued high demand, particularly among people with money to spend, contribute to the soaring prices, according to brokers.
“There’s a lot of money out there, and people don’t seem to be afraid to spend it,” said John Rice, a broker with Tate & Foss Sotheby’s International Realty in Rye. “The markup is unsustainable in the long run. But, having said that, there are no indices now, that I can see at least, that hint change is coming any time soon.”
The Seacoast Board of Realtors, in its June trends report, noted the median price of a home there was $804,500, itself a record.
The median price in that market was pushed by 32 single-family homes that sold for at least $1 million. The biggest sale for the month — which was also the biggest sale so far in 2023 — was 16 Atlantic Avenue, North Hampton, at $7 million.
“Pent-up demand remains robust in the Seacoast,” said Jessica Ritchie, Seacoast Board of Realtors president and a broker at Great Island Realty in Portsmouth. “We have a supply and demand issue that continues to spur selling prices to record levels.”
Statewide data from June supplied by the NH Association of Realtors shows an interesting inverse pattern. While median single-family prices are increasing — the median price of a single-family home rose by 7.2 percent to $495,000 — other indicators are decreasing:
• There were fewer closed sales across New Hampshire in June, down 15.5 percent from June 2022.
• There was a 7.2 percent drop in sales volume, falling to $827.9 million in June from last year.
• Pending sales were down 10.2 percent, and the number of new listings was down 23.4 percent.
• The affordability index (an index of 100 means you have enough money to afford a house; a lower number means a house is less affordable) stood at 61, a 12.9 percent decrease from last year.
“We are still seeing in many segments of our state sales of homes increasing. We have seen just as many homes sell for over $800,000 as we have seen sell under $320,000,” said NHAR President Ben Cushing, broker and regional manager of Four Seasons/Sotheby’s International Realty in Hanover. “Even though interest rates have increased, people still need places to live and … New Hampshire is a very, very desirable state.”
While the median price of a residential condominium in the state was a more moderate $400,000 in June, similar market conditions exist in that market too.
Closed sales were down 16.9 percent, volume of sales at $183.6 million was down 1.7 percent, and new listings were down 4.8 percent. Condo affordability was down 17.4 percent to an index of 76.
Rockingham County, which includes the Seacoast, leads the pack as far as median home prices are concerned.
Single-family prices in the 10 counties from highest to lowest are: Rockingham, $602,000; Belknap, $512,500; Hillsborough, $503,000; Carroll, $494,750; Merrimack, $475,000; Strafford, $462,500; Grafton, $410,000; Cheshire, $350,000; Sullivan, $340,950; and Coos, $205,000.
Median condo prices from highest to lowest among the counties include: Sullivan, $525,000l Belknap, $512,000; Rockingham, $485,000; Grafton, $398,500; Strafford, $363,600; Carroll, $350,000; Hillsborough, $347,500; Merrimack, $306,500; Cheshire, $234,950; no condo sales in Coos recorded for the month of June. — PAUL BRIAND
