Plymouth County saw its busiest month this year in real estate sales, while the number of refinances managed to come in with the second most recordings this year, reported Register of Deeds John R. Buckley, Jr.
Plymouth County recorded 815 deeds in June, representing a slow but fairly steady increase since January of this year, when 513 sales went to record. Through the first half of this year, Plymouth County recorded 3,496 deeds, down from 4,389 during the same period in 2022. While the volume of this year’s sales compared to last year has been down each month, the deficit in recorded deeds in 2023 has declined from a high of 30 percent in February to its current point of a 13 percent decline in June.
Sale prices have dropped dramatically in some areas of the country, and while Plymouth County has seen a flattening, property values are still higher than last year. The average sale price through June of this year was $602,943, modestly higher than the $596,797 during the same period in 2022.
“We’ve seen sale prices rise steadily for a number of years,” noted Buckley, “so we certainly notice the recent stabilization in prices. But given the more dramatic fall in other areas of the country, a one percent increase in Plymouth County represents a relatively healthy sales market.”
In terms of commerce generated through Plymouth County real estate sales, the total value sales through June of this year reached $2.1 billion.
Buckley reported what may be the new norm for a while in refinance activity, at least until interest rates come down. Plymouth County recorded 1,269 mortgages in June, about equal to the 1,274 in May, and up from the 1,002 in April. Through the first half of the year, Plymouth County recorded 6,306 mortgages, representing a 44 percent decline from the 11,320 mortgages recorded through the same period last year. At the same time, the average amount of each mortgage has decreased 3 percent, from $351,598 through June of 2022, to $340,714 this year.
As throughout the country, foreclosure activity has seen increases in recordings in Plymouth County. Buckley reported 12 foreclosure deeds were recorded in June. That figure brings the total number of foreclosure deeds recorded in 2023 to 66, representing an increase of 38 percent over the 48 recorded during the first half of 2022. Notices initiating new foreclosures have increased by 48 percent, with 305 recorded through June of this year as compared to 206 during the same period in 2022.
“Given the continued monthly increases in foreclosure activity we will continue to monitor it closely,” said Buckley.
