Merrimackhousingreport

Valley

An e-publication of UMass Lowell and the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds

University of
Massachusetts
Lowell

MIDDLESEX NORTH
REGISTRY OF DEEDS

NORTHERN ESSEX
REGISTRY OF DEEDS

Volume 8, Issue 4 April 2015

Merrimack Valley First Quarter Trends ......................................................................1
Lowell Real Estate: First Quarter 2015 .......................................................................................... 3

Merrimack Valley First Quarter Trends

By: David Turcotte

Another positive indicator during the first
three months of 2015 was the continued decline in the
number of foreclosures recorded in all major cities.
Lawrence, which had the highest number of foreclosure
deed filings at the inception of the foreclosure crisis,
witnessed the biggest drop (36%) from 14 to 9. The
number of foreclosure deeds recorded fell in Lowell
(28%) from 18 to 13 while Haverhill and Methuen saw
decreases of 19% and 13%.

Nevertheless, orders of notice, (the first formal
step in the foreclosure process), were up in three of the
four largest cities in the Valley during the first quarter
of 2015. Lawrence led the way with orders of notice
rising 213% from 8 to 25. Orders of notice filings
doubled in Lowell from 17 to 34 while Methuen had a
slight increase at 6%. On the positive side, the number
of orders of notice recorded in Haverhill declined
significantly (47%) from 17 to 9.

Real estate trends were mixed in the major
Merrimack Valley cities during the first three months
of 2015 when compared to the first quarter of 2014. On
the positive side, sales activity (deeds filed) increased
in Lawrence and Methuen over the first quarter of
2015 when compared to the same period in 2014.
Within the region, Methuen saw the biggest jump as
deeds recorded rose 19% from 197 to 235. Lawrence
experienced an 11% increase with 206 deeds recorded
in 2015 when compared to 2014s first three months
total of 186. However, Lowells deed filings declined
4% from 357 to 343 during this period while Haverhills
deeds dropped 3%.

A more encouraging trend was the number
of mortgages recorded, as all four cities experienced
increases in the first quarter of 2015 when compared
the same period in 2014. Lawrence had the biggest
jump at 35% followed by Methuen (33%), Lowell
(22%) and Haverhill (14%).

(Continued on page 2)

Deeds, Mortgages, Foreclosures and Orders of Notice Recorded

March 2014 and March 2015 compared

Deeds
Mortgages
Foreclosure
Deeds
Orders of
Notice

Haverhill
Mar-14
Mar-15
85
91
110
136

Lawrence
Mar-14
Mar-15
75
87
99
124

Lowell
Mar-14
Mar-15
150
138
143
210

Methuen
Mar-14 Mar-15
86
94
114
150

Merrimack Valley Housing Report

Lowell Real Estate:First Quarter 2015 Continued

What trends should we expect to see over the next quarter? It will be interesting to see if orders of notice
filings continue to increase over the next few months, which could be an indicator of possible spikes in the number
of foreclosure deeds recorded later in the year. Some observers are expecting to see fewer deeds
recorded in April and May due to large snow storms and below normal temperature in February and March.
Jan
Deeds
57
Mortgage
93
Foreclosure
3
Order of Notice 7

Methuen
Feb Mar
54
86
60
114
5
0
4
5

Jan
Deeds
83
Mortgage
103
Foreclosure
2
Order of Notice 8

Methuen
Feb Mar
58
94
103 150
3
2
4
5

Total Jan
197 88
267 101
8
7
16
2

2014
Haverhill
Feb Mar Total
59
85
232
88 110 299
5
4
16
6
9
17

Jan
108
136
3
4

Lowell
Feb
Mar
99
150
133
143
9
6
8
5

Total Jan
235 71
356 106
7
0
17
4

2015
Haverhill
Feb Mar Total
63
91
225
98 136 340
6
7
13
4
1
9

Jan
105
137
3
9

Lowell
Feb Mar
100
138
155
210
2
8
19
6

Methuen
2014 2015 % Change
Deeds
197 235
19%
Mortgages
267 356
33%
Foreclosure
8
7
-13%
Order of Notice 16
17
6%

Percent Change
Haverhill
2014 2015 % Change
232 225
-3%
299 340
14%
16
13
-19%
17
9
-47%

Lowell
2014 2015 % Change
357 343
-4%
412 502
22%
18
13
-28%
17
34
100%

Total
357
412
18
17

Total
343
502
13
34

Lawrence
Jan Feb Mar Total
56 55 75 186
64 50 99 213
8
1
5
14
3
0
5
8

Lawrence
Jan Feb Mar Total
52 67 87 206
79 84 124 287
3
1
5
9
12
9
4
25

Lawrence
2014 2015 % Change
186 206
11%
213 287
35%
14
9
-36%
8
25
213%

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Merrimack Valley Housing Report

Lowell Real Estate: First Quarter 2015

By: Richard P. Howe Jr.

Despite the terrible winter we just endured, there were some positive trends in Lowell
real estate during the first quarter of 2015. The number of documents recorded for properties in Lowell was up 6%, rising from 2548 in the first quarter of 2014 to 2706 for the same
period in 2015. The number of mortgages recorded was also a good sign, rising from 412 to
502, an increase of 22%.

There were also a few negative indicators. The number of deeds recorded was down
4%, declining from 357 to 343 and while the number of foreclosure deeds dropped (down
28%, from 18 to 13) the number of orders of notice, the document that signals an imminent
foreclosure, doubled rising from 17 in 2014 to 34 in 2015.

Taking a closer look at sales activity during the first three months of 2015, there were
59 days when the registry was or should have been open. On four of those days, we were
closed due to snowstorms. On another four days there were no sales for Lowell recorded.
Of the 343 deeds recorded, 144 were for no consideration which means they were transfers
between related parties such as a parent conveying to a child as a gift or a couple placing
their property into a trust.

Of the deeds that were arms-length transactions, the median price of deeds for full
consideration for the first quarter of 2014 was $177,500. The median price for 2015 deeds
for the same time period was $209,900. While it is unlikely that homes in Lowell have appreciated 18% over the past year, this increase in median price of homes being sold is a positive sign.

As for who is selling these properties, 42 of those sold in the first quarter of 2015
(21%) were acquired by the seller prior to 1985; another 11 were new construction, mostly
condominium units (6%); and 18 were properties that had just been through foreclosure
(9%). The vast majority of the properties, 128 of them or 64%, had been acquired by the
seller since 1985. Of these, 39 of them (39% of the group) sold for less than the seller had
paid to acquire the property in the first place while 89 of them (64% of the group) sold for a
gain.

With the record-breaking snowfall we experienced this winter, it seems a wonder that
any real estate transactions took place so assessing the state of the Lowell market during the
first quarter of 2015 must be viewed through that filter. That said, the overall indicators suggest that a sluggish market will continue, mostly because of the substantial number of homeowners who are either underwater on their loans or are at least living in homes that are worth
less than they paid to acquire them.

Merrimack Valley Housing Report

The Merrimack Valley Housing Report is published by
UMass Lowell and the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds
Richard P. Howe Jr., Editor
Richard.Howe@sec.state.ma.us
David Turcotte, Editor
David_Turcotte@uml.edu
Paul Iannuccillo, Contributor
Paul.Iannuccillio@sec.state.ma.us
Emily Chaves, Research Assistant/Writer
Emily_Chaves@uml.edu
Kelechi Adejumo, Contributing Writer
Kelechi_Adejumo@student.uml.edu
Izamar Rivera, Research Assistant
izamar_rivera@student.uml.edu
Institute of Housing Sustainability
c/o Center for Community Research and Engagement
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Mahoney Hall, 870 Broadway Street, Lowell, MA 01854
Tel. (978) 934-4682
www.uml.edu/mvhousing
This project is funded in part by the Office of the Chancellor and the
Office of Outreach. UMASS LOWELL

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