Hot off the presses – the complete 2024 Year End Market Watch PDF with graphs and town by town historical data can be found here.  In the meantime, here are some highlights:

Overall Real Estate Sales by Region: Residential, Condo, Multi, Commercial, and Land

Number of Sales and Dollar Volume Transacted Rose Slightly Countywide in 2024

The 2024 real estate sales pace increased slightly from last year, up 1% in the number of sales and 3% in the dollar volume of those transactions.  After the peak of pandemic buying in 2020-2021, sales in 2022 and 2023 retracted to pre-pandemic levels, but 2024 shows a slight rebound.  In 2024, the number of sales rose countywide with gains reported in both central and southern Berkshire, up 1% overall with an increase of 5% in middle Berkshire and 7% in southern Berkshire. Northern Berkshire however had falling 10% in the number of transactions and 7% in the volume of sales.  The dollar volume of properties transacted also rose, by 3% countywide with reported gains in middle Berkshire of 10% and 1% in southern Berkshire.  North county sales retracted to 2018-2019 levels. Reports by area REALTORS show that while the market has cooled from the frenzied pace, lack of inventory continues to take a toll on finding buyers their perfect property. Despite this, buyers are waiting if a property comes on the market believed to be priced too high for the value. The total number of all real estate transactions topped 2,389 in 2021, and this year sales dipped by to 1,6661 countywide.  With a total market volume of $717 million dollars transacted in 2024, property sales represent a significant economic engine in the Berkshires.  Many factors continue to impact the market, including low inventory, higher mortgage rates, inflation, nationwide debt and overall, more cautious buyers than the previous year.

All habitable property types sales increased from previous years – Residential; Condo and Multi-family homes.  However, Commercial and Land sales declined overall.  Please refer to the specific property type reports in the full market update.

Residential sales up 2%, dollar volume up 4%

Overall, the number of home sales in 2024 increased 2% over the previous year, with 1,133 sales, up from 1,112.  North County sales started robust but fell in the 3rd quarter, with a net decrease of 6% in single family homes sold.  The north county residential (single family) market retracted the most of any other area in the Berkshires noting a 6% decrease while both central and south county had increasing sales.  The annual single-family market totaled $546 million dollars, with the highest number of properties sold in central Berkshire, driven by Pittsfield market growth. Average sale prices continue to rise.

Condo sales rose 1%, dollar volume rose 10%.

Condominium sales in southern Berkshire County fell considerably in 2023, but rebounded significantly in 2024.  With a doubling of the number of units sold and a 51% increase in the dollar volume transacted, this positive momentum was a welcome market shift.  It should be noted that in southern Berkshire, despite the gains, the average sale price fell over last year’s unusually high rate.  The northern Berkshire condo market continues to struggle, but with 51 units transacted compared to 51, this difference was not significant in actual units transacted.  Central Berkshire remained steady with a very similar sales rate but a much higher selling price in the condo market in 2024, with a 27% increase in the average condo selling price.

Multifamily sales up 8% and dollar volume up 11%

2024 multifamily sales were strong countywide, with only a slight dip in the number of units sold in northern Berkshire and the dollar volume in southern Berkshire.  Otherwise, all data points show a robust multifamily market when compared to last year.  Still lower than the high during the pandemic year, this is a stable market rate.  Average selling prices of these 1-5 unit buildings rose by 4% to a countywide average of $255,307.

Land sales overall down 11%, dollar volume down 12%

South county land sales were hot in 2024!  After a few robust years of land sales, the Berkshire market started to retract in 2022 and continued the descent in 2023. In 2024, land sales in northern and central Berkshire fell considerably, while the south county market heated up with double digit increases in both the number of parcels sold and the value of those transactions.    With building costs an unknown going forward, it is important to maintain a close eye on permits and building opportunities to help alleviate pent-up buyer demand for existing homes in popular price points. It remains incredibly hard to build needed workforce priced housing with current costs and codes.

Commercial number of sales were down 19, dollar volume down 18%

With the nationwide commercial market heavily impacted by work-from-home and business closures during the pandemic, sales have been on a bit of a roller coaster since.  Sales rose in 2021, dipped in 2022 and regained momentum in 2023. As we headed into 2024, we were unsure of what to expect. In 2024, there were double digit decreases in both the number of commercial properties sold and the value of those properties overall.  It should be noted that these decreases are driven by a struggling commercial market in north and south Berkshire, whereas central Berkshire sales rose over the previous period.  Please note: not all REALTOR assisted commercial sales are included in this data, only those on the MLS.

Full Year PDF Editions: 2024 Year End Market Watch Report | 2023 Year End Market Watch Report | 2022 Year End Market Watch Report | (Note change in regional areas to mirror registry of deeds) 2021 Year End Market Watch Report | 2020 Year End Market Watch Report | 2019 Year End Market Watch Report | 2018 Year End Market Watch  | 2017 Year End Market Watch Report | 2016 Year End Market Watch Report | 2015 Year End Market Watch | 2014 Year End Market Watch | 2013 Year in Review Report | 2012 Year in Review Report| 2011 Year in Review Report