Melrose Home Prices Hold Near $900,000 Median in October Sales

MELROSE -- Eight recorded home sales with available prices ranged from $530,000 to $1,325,000 in October, with a median sale price of $897,000, according to deeds recorded at the South Middlesex Registry of Deeds. The month also saw nine property transfers recorded for nominal consideration, a pattern consistent with internal family or trust transfers rather than open-market sales.

MARKET OVERVIEW

The registry recorded 17 total property transfers in Melrose between Oct. 2 and Oct. 31. Of those, eight carried a recorded sale price, ranging from $530,000 to $1,325,000, with a median of $897,000. The remaining nine transfers were recorded for nominal consideration, meaning no market price was reported for those transactions. With only eight priced sales for the month, the raw count suggests a relatively quiet period for arm's-length transactions, though the presence of two sales above $1.2 million indicates some higher-end activity.

TOP SALES

20 Botolph St. sold for $1,325,000 on Oct. 9. The sellers were John A. Welch Jr. and Jean A. O'Toole; the buyers were Vincenzo Cammalleri and Lidia Lomuto.

721 Franklin St. sold for $1,200,000 on Oct. 7. The sellers were Erik R. Sabin and the estate of Dalia Zikas; the buyer was Haven Design and Build LLC.

166 Waverly Ave. sold for $965,000 on Oct. 7. The sellers were Anne and Walter Dabek; the buyers were Tyler Anthony Ruemmele and Tiffany Ann Therese Ruemmele.

64 Cleveland St. sold for $925,000 on Oct. 2. The seller was Otis Street Realty LLC; the buyers were Yangzom Dolma and Tsering Tashi.

204 Beech Ave. sold for $869,000 on Oct. 5. The sellers were Robert E. Grover and Donna M. Grover, as trustees; the buyers were Daniel M. Lerner and Emily E. Lerner.

NEIGHBORHOOD BREAKDOWN

No single street recorded more than one priced sale in October. By price tier, six of the eight priced sales fell in the $500,000-to-$1 million range: 30 Wheeler Ave. ($530,000), 86 Highview Ave. ($650,000), 134 Washington St. ($735,000), 204 Beech Ave. ($869,000), 64 Cleveland St. ($925,000) and 166 Waverly Ave. ($965,000). Two sales exceeded $1 million: 721 Franklin St. ($1,200,000) and 20 Botolph St. ($1,325,000). No sales below $500,000 were recorded with a price this month.

MARKET NOTES

Nine of the 17 recorded transfers in October carried nominal consideration rather than a market price, meaning the buyer's name did not represent an arm's-length purchase in the traditional sense. Several of those transfers show matching or closely related names between grantor and grantee, consistent with a shift into trust ownership: examples include Peter G. Lawhorne transferring 51 Melrose St. Unit 6A to "Lawhorne Peter G TR," Philip J. and Karyl C. Cargill transferring 57 Rowe St. to themselves as trustees, and Kirstin Nettelbladt Anderson and Matthew Hale Anderson transferring 1 Indian Hill Lane to themselves as trustees. Beds, baths and square footage were not available in the deed data for any property, so no price-per-square-foot comparisons could be calculated this month. Among priced sales, one involved a corporate seller (Otis Street Realty LLC at 64 Cleveland St.) and one involved a corporate buyer (Haven Design and Build LLC at 721 Franklin St.), while the remainder listed individual buyers and sellers.

Recorded Deeds

Source: Registry of Deeds. Sale amounts shown as recorded; transfers without a disclosed consideration are noted as such.

Compiled from official town feeds, community organizations, and local press. Outside reporting is attributed inline.