Hub condo sales drop, prices rise

Boston's condominium market posted a surprisingly weak start of the year as sales in in-town neighborhoods dropped 8 percent in the first quarter of 2007.

The drop in sales was most pronounced in condo buildings along Boston's waterfront, which had 40 fewer sales in the first quarter compared to the same period last year, and in the South End and Fenway neighborhoods, according to Listing Information Network Inc., or Link, which tracks the industry.

All other in-town city neighborhoods except the West End posted higher sales, Link said. Link includes Boston's neighborhoods from Charlestown to the Fenway, Back Bay to South Boston, and the South End, in its analysis.

But Link said the median price for a downtown condo increased 4 percent in the first quarter to $479,000.

The Link numbers are in contrast to a report issued two weeks ago by Otis & Ahearn, a Boston real estate brokerage and marketing firm, that said condo sales were essentially flat in the first quarter and prices up 7 percent.

Kevin Ahearn, Otis & Ahearn president, said his analysis included East Cambridge, where sales were up, a neighborhood not covered by the Link report.

He also said some developers do not report all their condo sales to Link.

Ahearn reiterated his earlier view that Boston's in-town condo market is thriving.

Other brokers, however, sought to explain the 8 percent sales drop in the Link report by suggesting the condo market may be suffering from a tough comparison to early last year, when new buildings such as the 266-unit Gateway Terrace Lofts in the South End posted strong sales.

That's the view of Brad Sprogis of Sprogis and Neal Real Estate, who also said newly built or renovated units are selling faster than old buildings that need costly repairs or refurbishing.

"Buyers don't get very excited about taking on a renovation project," he said. "People are definitely gravitating towards new or freshly refurbished."

And, when they do buy, they are also gravitating to larger, higher-end units. More three- and two-bedroom units sold during the first quarter of 2007 than a year ago, while sales of one-bedroom units dropped by a whopping 28 percent, and sales of studio units also declined.

Moreover the average price of downtown units increased by 12 percent. Average prices -- in contrast to the median price, which is at the mid-point of all condos sold -- are typically pulled up by sales in the highest-price ranges.

"The big ones are selling faster because those tend to be the new construction units," said Link president Debra Taylor Blair.

Kimberly Blanton can be reached at blanton@globe.com.