Home sales in Connecticut got a bit of a pop in June, rising to their highest level for the month since 2006 and prices inched up modestly, a new report shows.
Sales of single-family houses rose nearly 9 percent in June compared with a year earlier, reaching the highest level for the month since the state tumbled into the last recession, according to the report from The Warren Group, which tracks real estate trends in New England and publishes The Commercial Record.
The median sale price — in which half the sales are above, half below — gained 1.5 percent in June, climbing to $270,000, from $266,000 a year earlier, the report shows.
Paula Fahy Ostop, a real estate agent at William Raveis/Ellyn Marshall & Associates in West Hartford, said tepid price gains directly reflect the state's economy.
"It's simply where the market is," Ostop said. "When we have positive growth in the economy and the job market, then the prices will go up."
In the Hartford area, home purchases have been on the upswing this spring; and when the state passes a budget, it is likely sales "will be a little bit stronger in the fall," Ostop said.
In Hartford County, sales of single-family houses rose nearly 11 percent in June, and the median sale price gained about 2 percent, to $234,000, up from $230,000 a year ago, Warren Group said.
Through the first six months of the year, sales of single-family houses across Connecticut rose 6.7 percent compared with the same period in 2016. The median sale price rose less than one percent to $244,000 compared with $242,500 in the same period.
"Though the median price of homes has remained relatively flat over this time, attractive prices may be the primary factor driving the modest climb in sales numbers," said Timothy Warren, chief executive of The Warren Group.
Connecticut has struggled to gain sustainable momentum in its housing recovery. Sales have picked up but prices — a key component of recovery that typically follow an increase in sales in recovery — have lagged.
The statewide median sale price registered for the first six months of this year is 17 percent lower than the annual peak of $295,000 in 2007.
That has put some sellers in a bind, especially those who bought at the top of the market. The price declines in the recession and their slow comeback in the last decade has left some owners owing more than their homes are worth.
This year's spring housing market — traditionally the strongest of the year and a well-watched indicator of developing trends for the year — showed a tentative start in March and April but perked up in May.
Economists say low interest rates are helping to spur home purchases. But slow employment growth and the dire condition of the state's fiscal health is causing buyers to pull back from paying too much for a home.
They also say there is a mismatch between the kind of houses sought and their condition — updates and neutral paint colors, for example — and what is in the marketplace.
Experts caution not to paint the state with too broad a brush, noting there are pockets of strength and weakness, leading to multiple offers on the most desirable homes.
Across Connecticut's eight counties, sales of single-family houses rose in all but Litchfield and Windham counties in June, with New London County leading the way with a 25-percent year-over-year increase.
The median sale price rose in five of eight counties in June on a year-over-year basis, with Windham County registering the strongest gain, up nearly 16 percent, to $200,000, from $172,950.
The median price fell in Litchfield, Middlesex and Tolland counties, with the deepest decline — 5 percent — in Litchfield County.
Shifts in the median do not mean all sales are following the same trend or that home values are generally rising or falling. The median also can be influenced by the mix of houses sold. Prices can vary widely from town to town and even neighborhood to neighborhood.
The median sale price, however, does provide a broad, overall indicator in price trends.
