Topsfield sales top out at $1.3 million as median holds near $1 million

TOPSFIELD -- Fifteen properties changed hands in Topsfield between July 10 and August 8, with prices ranging from $590,000 to $1.3 million among the nine sales that disclosed a price. Nearly half the period's transactions were transfers within the same family or into a trust.

MARKET OVERVIEW

Essex County Registry of Deeds records show 15 recorded transfers in Topsfield during the period, nine of which listed a consideration amount. Among those nine, prices ranged from $590,000 to $1,300,000, with a median sale price of $980,000. The remaining six transfers listed no price, consistent with deed entries for trust and family transfers, where consideration is often not recorded. Based on raw count alone, 15 recorded transfers over four weeks represents a active pace of deed activity for the town, though the data does not indicate how many were open-market sales versus internal family transfers.

TOP SALES

The period's highest-priced sale was 5 Blueberry Lane, which sold for $1,300,000 on Aug. 7. Gerard L. McCarthy sold the property to Angela Daley. The second-highest sale was 8 Millbrook Lane, Lot 1, which sold for $1,275,000 on Aug. 4; John H. Mitchell sold to Neil Shea. Close behind, 8 Caitlin Lane, Lot 1, sold for $1,250,000 on July 20, with John Okelly selling to Ryan Bacharach. At 189 Ipswich Road, Lot 16, the property sold for $1,075,000 on Aug. 3; Matthew R. Fullerton sold to Alexander Rogers. Rounding out the top five, 89 North Street, Lot 3-5, sold for $980,000 on July 30, with Vincent J. Schettino Jr., as trustee, selling to Peter E. Guarino.

NEIGHBORHOOD BREAKDOWN

Ipswich Road accounted for two sales in the period: 189 Ipswich Road, Lot 16, at $1,075,000, and 60 Ipswich Road, Lot 4, with a price not disclosed. No other street had more than one recorded transfer. By price tier among the nine disclosed sales, five fell between $500,000 and $1 million: 77 High Street, Lot 2 ($590,000); 42 Grove Street, Parcel B ($600,000); 3 Summer Street, Unit 2 ($707,500); 37 Colrain Road, Lot 3 ($774,900); and 89 North Street, Lot 3-5 ($980,000). Four sales exceeded $1 million: 189 Ipswich Road, Lot 16; 8 Caitlin Lane, Lot 1; 8 Millbrook Lane, Lot 1; and 5 Blueberry Lane.

MARKET NOTES

Seven of the 15 recorded transfers, nearly half, involved a seller and buyer sharing the same surname or a trust entity tied to the seller. These include 470 Boston St. Unit 9 (Jones family trust to a related irrevocable trust), 21 Kinsman Lane Lot 24 and 60 Ipswich Road Lot 4 (individuals transferring to their own trusts), 14 Andrews Road and 13 Arrowhead Road (trustees and family trust transfers), 4 Aaron Drive Lot 13A (King family trust), and 77 High Street Lot 2, where Deborah Leahy sold to Jack Henry Leahy for a disclosed $590,000. Deed records do not indicate the reason for these transfers. The dataset also includes two condominium unit sales, at 470 Boston Street and 3 Summer Street, while the remaining properties are recorded with lot designations, consistent with single-family homes in subdivided parcels. No square footage, bedroom or bathroom data was available from the deed records for any property in the period.

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.