A Hot July

As the weather improved we continued to see improvement over what had been a late spring market. The number of homes that have gone to contract have increased in all the Mid-Fairfield towns, though the coastal towns showed more activity than our landlocked neighbors.

Westport had 29 homes go to contract in July, a 74.4% jump over the previous July. On a year to date basis there has been a more modest 5.8% increase in properties that have gone to contract.  Year to date sales through July stood at 220 single family homes compared to 216 the previous year at this time-a 1.9% increase.  Inventory levels at 8 months have decreased, but are not at levels one would
expect in an active market.  These levels are somewhat influenced by new construction and other high end properties on the market which are selling more slowly than properties below $1.5 million.
The median price is currently at $1,295,500 ( off 2%) through July, but some higher priced sales should see those levels rise.

Weston continues to have a solid though not spectacular year.  The median price now stands at 852k compared to 820k at this time last year.  Homes that have gone to contract are up 6% and inventory has been dropping, though at 11 months it is still too high.  The high end is weighing on those figures.  In terms of sales, the 94 homes sold through July was the exact same number as through July 2014.

Wilton has seen a big jump in median sale's price to $870,000, compared to $790,000 last year, and homes going to escrow have increased 3.4% to 152, but sales have been lagging, with 125 through July compared to 136 through July, 2014.  Inventory levels fall into the middle range of 8.7 months.

Fairfield entry levels sales continue to go strong.  With 458 sales compared to 392 through July 2014,
Fairfield has been an active market.  Homes going to escrow have jumped 24% with 534 through July.  The median price is holding steady at $575,000 compared to $573k last year.  High end sales have also been lagging in Fairfield.

At The Halfway Mark

Nationwide there has been a marked uptick in sales, and certain towns in Connecticut have started to see a similar trend.  Mid-Fairfield seems to be less 'hot' than some other areas.

Westport had a solid month of June with 64 properties going to contract compared to 49 in the previous year. This is something we had sensed might come since we had a spring market that started later than usual this year due to a harsh winter, and late spring.  There have been 206 properties that have gone to contract through June, compared to 203 during the same time period in 2014, which represents an increase of 1.5%. Closed sales, however stood at 158 through June (single family homes) compared to 173 through June, 2014.  A 'heavy' inventory of new homes and homes over $2 million may be having an effect on the overall Westport market.

Weston has been a town that has seen a 'bounce back' year, and June saw that trend continuing.  94 properties going to contract vs. 79 in June of 2014 bears testament to the continuing improvement.
Year to date there have been 72 closed sales, an increase of 14.3%.  The median price of $851,000
represents a 2.5% increase.

Wilton has also had a solid year.  The median price of $865,000 is slightly above that of its neighbor, Weston, but June saw a 10.9% jump to $950,000.  June sales were up, 48 vs. 35 in June, 2014, but closed sales are down 98 compared to 109 through June 2014.  The +/- differential indicates a very similar result to 2014.  

Fairfield continues to have a hot/cold market.  On the hot side are homes under $700,000. 200 of the 367 sales recorded through June sold for under $600,000.  This goes a long way in explaining the year to date median price of $560,000, ( a decrease by the way of 2.6%). This entry level range is the 'hot' part of the market.   However, as a whole, only 15 homes have sold so far this year over $1,500,000 in Fairfield. That is a strikingly low number for a town of this size.  This compares to 70 in Westport, and 68 in New Canaan, both with less than half the population of Fairfield.  Sales in Greenfield Hill have been soft, with a median price in that area hovering slightly above $1 million. There have been 39 sales on the 'Hill' through June 30th.  There are currently 130 homes actively listed for sale in Greenfield Hill.

Surprisingly hot spring in some parts

Activity in the marketplace under $1 million continues to advance at a rapid pace.  Weston continues to be the standout in that regard.  32 properties went to contract in Weston in March compared to 11 in 2014 representing an increase of more than 190 per cent.  Year to date there have been 46 properties that have gone to contract versus 26 in the first quarter of 2014 in Weston.  At the same time the median price in Weston compared to the first quarter of 2014 decreased by 21 % to $655,000.  In other words, the majority of activity has been on homes under $800,000.  There have only been 93 new properties that have come to the market in the first quarter compared to 103 in the first quarter of 2014.  Based on current activity there is 5.8 month of inventory. 

Wilton to has also had a hot spring market. March saw 37 properties go to contract, an increase of 105% over March 2014.  Year to date there have been 61 properties that have gone to contract compared to 41 in the first quarter of 2014.  Contrary to Weston, however, median prices are on
the rise in Wilton.  The median price of homes that have sold this year are up 25.4% to $875,000,
compared to $698,000 in the first quarter of 2014.  Wilton has however, seen an increase in new properties coming to the market, up 10.8%.  Closed sales are also down a bit, with 29 closed sales in the first quarter compared to 34 in the first quarter of 2014, representing a 14.7% drop.

Westport's median price has seen a slight decrease of 3.8% to $1,250,000. March contracts were down slightly (-6.5%) to 43 compared to March 2014.  First quarter results also saw a drop off,
77 vs. 87 in '14, or 11.5%.  Closed sales are also down slightly (-3.2%) to 61 (vs. 63) in the first
quarter.  Recent activity in April has been more brisk and these figures will likely be positive for
the month of April.

Fairfield continues to be the steadiest of the towns, with a median price increase of 2.8%.
Contracts in March were up to 101 compared to 60 in March, 2014.  Interest rates are helping to
drive the entry level buyers.  First quarter results are up 31.6% to 179 units under contract.  Closed sales are also up, 11.9% to 113 units in the first quarter.

There have been some recent indications that properties in the $1million-$2 million levels have been more active as have some of the higher end properties over $3 million.