Early Spring Update

2011 has been marked in all areas by significantly low inventories in all towns. This may be due in part to the record number of snowfalls that we have had, or may also be due to potential home sellers who have decided to wait until prices move back to previous levels before listing. The result has been a very strong demand for homes that are well-priced and in excellent condition, across all price points. There are still some excellent opportunities for buyers looking for homes that may have been passed over because they have been on the market for an extended period of time.

In Westport current inventory represents 5 months of inventory versus 8.8 months at this time last year. 114 new properties have come to market year to date versus 147 last year. There are currently 29 properties under binder, and an additional 54 properties under contract. There have been 31 closed sales since Jan. 1 as compared to 29 last year at this time. The median sold price has been $1.19 m vs. 1.1m in 2010 at this time.

Weston has seen the same number of sales year to date as in 2010. Its inventory of homes on the market has decreased from 6.5 months to 5 months of inventory. The median sales price year to date has increased to $840,000 from only $740,000 compared to this time of year in 2010. There are currently 10 properties under binder, and 18 properties under contract.

Wilton also saw major reductions in inventory with only 4.1 months of inventory currently compared to 9.4 months at this time last year. There have only been 48 new properties that have come to the market compared to 71 at this time last year. Sales are up 25% over last year’s early total. The median sold price is down 6.8% from this time last year, standing currently at $825k, just a bit below Weston, which often has very similar statistics.

Fairfield has also seen a major decline in inventory, from 6.4 months at this time in 2010 to the current level of 3.9 months. There have only been 122 new properties that have come to the market compared to 261 at this time last year. There has been a marked uptick in contracted properties with 89 properties under contract now as compared to only 71 at this time last year. There are an additional 47 properties under Binder, including several over $2m, which may be an indication of a strengthening of the higher end in Fairfield, which showed signs of weakness in 2010.
Buyer demand appears to be strong.

The average days on market in all towns is significantly higher than in years past which is reflective of a large number of homes that have been on the market for more than 180 days. The months of March and April 2010 saw a sudden surge of buying interest, and early signs of activity may be forecasting a similar result.