Year End Sales Report

In 2023, the housing market faced significant challenges, extending the adverse trends observed at the close of 2022. It evolved into a historically challenging period for prospective homebuyers, marked by the lowest affordability levels ever recorded. Traditional seasonal patterns were disrupted, with the absence of the anticipated spring homebuying season. Throughout the year, inventory remained exceptionally low, contributing to a substantial decline in sales.

So what happened? In short: Record mortgage rates, high inflation, and persistently high housing and rental prices. But there was a lot more to it as well.

In Maine, the number of homes sold declined dramatically for the second consecutive year as only 13,771 single-family transactions were completed. This represented a drop of 18.8% from 2022, following a similar decline in 2021 of 17.7%. Median selling prices continued to rise and reached a record at $360,000, a 7.5% increase over 2022. Prices did moderate over the second half of the year as the impact of high mortgage rate had a significant impact.

You can download a complete copy of the report here – 2023 Year-End Real Estate Report. Alternatively, you can also view Maine Sales Statistics updated each month on our website.