It probably won't surprise you to hear that the action in the Baltimore metro area's housing market last year was in non-ritzy price ranges. First-time buyers tempted by the $8,000 tax credit aren't the demographic for mansions.
Here's how home sales in the metro area changed in 2009 compared with 2008, by price range:
Under $250,000: 12,500 homes sold, up 20 percent
$250,000-$349,999: 5,500 homes sold, down 7 percent
$350,000-$499,999: 3,350 homes sold, down 11 percent
$500,000-plus: 2,200 homes sold, down 13 percent
Just for fun, share your go-to price range:
On a related note, real estate search site Trulia says price reductions on homes currently for sale are still significant around here. The average drop in Baltimore: 12 percent. The average drop in Baltimore for homes above $1 million: 18 percent.
An 18 percent decrease on a $1.5 million home is enough money to buy some homes with -- $270,000. But that's chump change compared with some of the asking-price decreases out there. Consider this five-bedroom Canton condo, reduced from $3 million to $2 million.