Mass. Home Sales Soar In July

Sales of single-family homes soared last month in Massachusetts.

According to real estate tracking group The Warren Group, there were 7,077 home sales in July, a gain of 24 percent compared with the same month last year, and the highest monthly total since June 2005.

A separate group, the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, reported 6,614 sales of single-family homes last month, a jump of 20 percent over July 2014. The two organizations use slightly different methodologies.

"A rough winter and pent-up demand turned into a strong spring that is a positive sign for the real estate market throughout the state," Cassidy Murphy, editorial director of The Warren Group, said in a statement.

The median sales price for single-family homes in July was $359,900, according to The Warren Group, and slightly more, $365,000, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors.

"While prices are moderating, they continue to be high because the demand is there and the inventory continues to remain low -- an issue that has been going on for several years now," MAR President Corinne Fitzgerald said in a statement. "Besides sellers deciding to sell, builders building more workforce housing would greatly help this situation."

Condo sales and prices also rose last month, the two groups said, when compared with figures from July 2014. The realtors association reported that condo sales were up 13 percent over the year, while The Warren Group said that condo sales were up 20 percent over the July 2014 tally.

With reporting by the WBUR Newsroom and State House News Service