Foreclosures Down Slightly in August

998 foreclosure deeds (the final step of the foreclosure process) were recorded in Massachusetts in August 2008, down 2% from August 2007 levels. Petitions to foreclose (the first step in the process) were down even more dramatically in August. There were 943 such petitions filed in Massachusetss in August this year, compared to 3,112 in August last year - a drop of nearly 70%.

MA Home Prices Hit 6-Year Low

The median price of a single-family home in Massachusetts dropped 9% in August, sinking to the lowest price for the month of August in 6 years, according to a new report from The Warren Group. The median sale price for single-family homes in August was $323,000, compared to $355,000 in August 2007. That figure is the lowest price for August since 2002, when the median sale price was $297,500.

The median home price year-to-date in 2008 is $318,000, down 9.1% from the same time period in 2007. And total sales year-to-date are down nearly 17% from 2007 levels.