Updated Sales Figures through December 7, 2018 -A Reflection of the Stock Market?

At the end of  January 1, 2018 the Dow Jones stood at $24,824, a phenomenal standard at the time.  It went at high as 26,773 just two months ago, on October 3rd.  That is a nearly 9 per cent difference between the high and low point.

As of today, the median price of single family homes in Westport  is down 8.6% for the year, a remarkably similar figure to the figure just cited. Clearly the new tax laws which limit mortgage and real estate taxes deductions has impacted the Northeast, especially in towns with many high end homes . The 2017 median price in Westport was $1,320,000 compared to $1,220,000 this year.  The volume of sales in Westport has declined approximately 5% since the beginning of the year.  Year to date totals of 2018 are currently at 391 versus 411 at the same time last year. Active listings stand at 292 single family homes, and there are 36 properties under contract (or binder). End of the year statistics will be impacted by the number of closings that take place before the year's end.  Stay tuned in early January for those figures.

Westport's sister town of Weston has had a slightly more challenging year in terms of pricing.  The median price at this time in 2017 was $771,000 versus $699,000 through today in 2018.  That is a 9.4% difference.  In terms of volume, though, there have actually been 2 more sales year to date compared with last year, 156 versus 154.  The actives currently stand at 137, with an additional 24 properties that are under contract/binder. 

Wilton experienced a flip performance compared to its neighbor, Weston.  The median price went from $747,000 in 2017 to $797,000 currently, a 6.7% increase.  Other the other hand, Wilton saw a decrease in sales volume of 10%, from 217 single family sales at this time last year to 195  as of today.  There are 23 properties under contract and 169 active listings.

The town of Fairfield also experienced mixed signals.  The median price jumped from $508,000 at this time last year, to $630,000 currently, a gain of 24 percentage points.  The sales volume, however, went from 747 single family homes last year to 699 as of today, a drop of 6.4%.  Fairfield currently has 368 active listings and 91 properties under contract. 

Mid Year Sluggishness

Early indications of sales volume increases in Westport were not realized as the season reached the midway mark.  Total closed single family home sales were down 2%, from a total of 205 in 2017 through June 30, to 201 in 2018.  The 2017 median sales price through June stood at $1,436,000.  It is currently at $1,236,000. The decrease is likely being influenced by a greater number of sales under $1 million, 68 this year compared to 60 at the same time last year. There are currently 96 single family homes listed under $1 million.  My suspicion is that the limits imposed by the new tax laws in terms of allowable mortgage deductions and real estate taxes is playing a role in the lower median sales values.

The sales break down for some popular areas of town were as follows for 2018:

18 sales at Compo Beach compared to 25 in 2017.  Paradoxically, the median sales price increased from $1,737,000 in 2017 to $2,200,000 in 2018.

28 Sales in Greens Farms compared to 17 in 2017, a healthy increase, though the median price decreased from $1,867,500 to $1,512,500 through June.

Lastly, Saugatuck Shores sales are down from 11 in 2017 to 8 in 2018. The median sales price has been $1,025,000 compared to $925,000 in 2017, though these figures are not representative because summer sales are common in this part of town, and these numbers are likely to change significantly by year's end.

Quick overview of Westport results through May 31, 2018

Nearly Midway through the Year

Through the first five months of the year, there have been 
152 salesof single family homes in Westport.  This compares
favorably to the 143 sales at this time last year.  The average 

price of the 2018 sales has been $1,477,674, with those homes 

averaging 120 days on the market.  The volume of homes on the
market (inventory) has been trending downward.

There are currently  365 single family homes on the market.  
The average sales price of homes with 4 or more bedrooms
has been well above the average, whereas the 22 homes 
with three bedrooms have had an average

sales price of $733,057.  Total sales volume in Westport year
to date is $653,131,995, with an additional 105 homes that
have accepted offers or are under contract.

Greens Farms sales have increased to 

19 from 10 at this time last year, with a median price 

of $1,450,000.  Compo Beach area sales have remained even (17)

with the median price currently at $2,200,000.  Saugatuck Shores sales
have only totaled 6 compared to 10 at this  time last year.

Demand for homes under $ 1 million remains very solid, and new
construction sales continue to be steady.

First Quarter Results/Westport

 Activity Up / Inventory Down

Through the first quarter of 2018, 75 single family home sales have been recorded town-wide, representing an 18% increase compared to the same period in 2017 when 61 homes sold.  Some of these early sales may have been spurred by a reduction in allowable mortgage deductions ($750,000) brought about by the new tax cuts.

The median price of $1,405,000 compared to a first quarter ’17 median price of $1,535,000.  In the coastal areas, the 2018 median price thus far is $1,775,000 compared to first quarter ’17 results.  There have been 25 sales in Greens Farms/Compo Beach/Saugatuck Shores area, a 44% increase from the first quarter of 2017.  At the same time, the inventory of homes is currently down 15% compared to the same time period in 2017. In addition there are 88 homes which have either accepted offers or are under contract.

A closer look reveals that:  9 homes have sold in the Compo Beach area ($1,775,000 median price), 11 homes have sold in Greens Farms ($1,817,000 median price) and 5 homes have sold in Saugatuck Shores ($1,500,000 median price) including the highest sale town-wide thus far at 3 Charmer’s Landing for $5,362,000.  Typically, market inventory sees a zenith in mid to late May, though new listings come on throughout the year.

For a FREE Comparative Market Analysis, to find out how much your home is worth in the current market, please give Rob a call.

Why Some Buyers Don't want to Buy your house

Today’s buyers are more and more savvy about what is going on in the real estate market, most specifically about how long a house has been on the market, what it was originally listed for, and what it has sold for in the past. Thanks to websites like Zillow and Trulia much of this information is readily available.                                                                

Last year in Westport there were 433 single family home sales-a very respectable number.  What is often not realized is that in 2017 there were 215 single family listings that Expired before sale (with a median price of $1,495,000).  In addition, there were 249 Cancellation of listings (with a median price of $1,679,000). 

Looking at the pricing breakdown in more detail offers some interesting insights.  In the past 12 months there have been 176 properties sold that were listed under $1,000,000, and a total of 126 Expireds and Cancellations.  In other words almost 60% of the properties sold.

In the range of $1,000,000-1,500,000 there were 113 solds and 112 expireds and cancellations, or about 50% sold.

For properties listed between $1,500,000 and $2 million there were 94 solds and 85 expireds/canc. meaning that the odds of a house in this price range selling (53%) was actually higher than those listed between $1 million-1.5 million.

Between $2m and $2.5million, the percentages dropped slightly with 43 sales and 46 expireds and cancellations. That represents a 48% sales rate.

For homes listed between $2.5 million up to $3 million, ther were 24 sales and 42 expireds/cancellations, representing roughly a 35% success rate.

Not surprisingly,(because the buyer pool is smaller)  the success rate drops for homes listed at over $3 million.  There were 28 homes listed for over $3 million that sold last year and 72 expireds/cancellations representing a 28% success rate.

Many of these listings will come back to the market as new listings, and some are currently among the 242 current active listings.  The reason that the majority of these homes did not sell is due to several factors, though it usually boils down to two.  The first is presentation-whether the home compares favorably to similar homes on the market.  The second is price.

For those that would like to learn more I give a class at Staples high School twice a year re; How to Avoid the Costly Pitfalls when selling your home, in the spring and fall, or give me a call directly and I would be happy to look at your home and give you a free consultation.