August 2012 Trends

Steamy Summer The temperatures weren’t the only thing heating up as we continued to see a nice boost in summer sales activity. As always a quick look at individual towns to look at the figures: Westport single family sales to date (through August 31st) now stand at 254 vs. 263 in 2011, but the gap continues to narrow as 48 properties entered escrow in August vs. 28 in August 2011. The median sales price in August was $1,400,000 reflecting sales of some larger homes, but the yearly median price is holding steady at $1,250,000, a 9.5% increase over 2011. Weston is ahead of its’ 2011 figures with 80 homes that have closed title, and 32 homes that went to escrow in August! The median price is now at $736,000, though the August median sold price was $789,000. Homes over $1 million are starting to sell again in Weston. There are still some excellent buying opportunities, especially at $1,200,000+. Occasional bank owned properties are being purchased quickly. This has had a downward influence on the median sales price with fewer units trading in Weston than in a larger town such as Westport. Wilton has also followed the same trends as in Weston. Its’ 156 single family home sales represented a 19% increase over 2011 sales through August (131). The median sales price in Wilton is also trending downwards, as in Weston. The August figure was $752,000 which was just below the yearly number’s trend at $756,000. Though not quite as impressive as Weston’s, the August escrows jumped from 17 to 27, an impressive 58% increase. Sales spike was also the order of the month in Fairfield. The 91 homes that went to escrow represented a 127.5% increase over 2011. Closed sales in Fairfield are already running at nearly 12% over 2011 totals. The Median Closed sales price is exactly where it was at this time last year, at $551,000. The smallest of the Mid-Fairfield towns, Easton, also followed a similar path. August sales increased 57%! Closed sales through August are up the same amount. The median sales price in Easton has also seen a drop year over year, to $590,000. Norwalk, our largest neighbor, is also following a similar path. Its’ 345 closed sales represent a nearly 11% increase in sales, and August sales saw a 28.9% jump. Norwalk remains the most affordable Mid-Fairfield area. The Median Sales price now stands at $415,000, which fell only 1.2% in the past year. Our largest city to the west, Stamford, also followed the same trend, with a 56% spike in August contracts. Year to date closed sales are up 6.3% over last year, and the median sales price has seen a 3.3% increase to $563,000.

2012 Mid Year Report

The pace of sales for the first six months of 2012 was similar to the same time period in the previous year, however, within the different towns, and different sub-sectors of the market there have been some subtle changes. In Westport the actual number of closings of single family homes through June 30th, 2012, was 168 compared to 184 in the previous year, a drop of 8.6%. However there are 230 properties that have gone to contract compared to 213 through June 30, 2011, an increase of 8%, basically offsetting the shortage of closings compared to 2011. That is to say that I expect that those sales figures will even out when the escrowed properties change title. The median sales price in Westport was $1,250,000, an increase of 9.2%, which was an indication of both higher numbers of sales on the higher end of the spectrum, as well as a limited inventory of ‘good’, i.e., move-in ready properties, which has boosted prices in the median range of the marketplace. 105 of the 168 single family homes that have passed title were sold for over $1,000,000. Homes requiring more updating on the lower end of the Westport marketplace have been more negatively impacted pricewise. New, and newer constructed homes have dominated the sales of properties in the high end (Over $2,000,000). Waterfront homes have moved more slowly in the high end, with increased inventory in neighboring markets. There has been an increase in showing activity in the past 6 weeks or so, as the weather has improved. Condo sales in Westport have seen an increase in the median sales price (currently $645,000), up 13.8%. Condo inventory has dropped over 20% year to date. There were 15 sales compared to 16 the previous year. Demand is strong, and the average marketing time has dropped by over 25%. Weston sales are down 11.7 year over year, but with a 29.8% increase in escrows that should translate into a sales rate that will outpace 2011. Closed sales are up by 17.6% in Wilton, and properties that have gone to contract are up by nearly 50%, so end of the year figures should go up considerably from 2011, though condo sales in Wilton are down slightly from last year, even though inventory has decreased. Fairfield’s numbers look similar to 2011 at first glance with sales up 3.1%, but with a 37% increase in properties in escrow, final sales numbers should be excellent. The median price has taken a hit though, with the current median price being $533,000. The lower end of the market has continued to dominate in Fairfield, though there has been a recent increase in high end activity. The condo market has also followed similar lines, with increased sales numbers, and a dropping median price ($312,000 year to date).