Just Listed " The Odd Couple House"

73 Good Hill Road   Weston

Updated Revolutionary War Era Colonial

Wonderful mix of old and new. Charming Revolutionary era colonial with stunning newer custom white kitchen with granite counters and spacious Master bathroom with shower and bathtub. Located in Lower Weston, minutes to schools and Merritt Parkway. 4 bedrooms (Field card shows 5), 3 baths, 4 fireplaces, exposed beams, hardwood floors throughout. Over 3200 square feet of living space. First floor office/den can function as a guest bedroom, or au pair suite. Huge bee hive fireplace in dining area. This had once been the home of actors Jack Klugman & Brett Somers.

$699,000

PUBLIC OPEN HOUSE
SUNDAY, JUNE 12TH
2-4 P.M.

Slowly Picking Up Speed

Westport has seen a pick up in sales of New Construction, some of which have been sitting for several months.  That is a key factor behind the median price increasing to $1,538,500 year to date.  Closed sales (an indicator of late autumn activity) is also up with 44 closed sales thus far compared to 35 last year at the end of February.   In terms of recent activity there were 30 homes that went to contract in February compared to 20 in 2015.  Combined with January activity there have now been 53 properties that have gone to contract compared to 34 last year, a pickup of 55.9%.  Inventory is still at higher than one would hope for, but the still large number of new homes that may be under construction and will stay on the market for many months until completed, tend to make these numbers more difficult to use as a good indicator.

Market activity in Weston has been slower to pick up steam, but it appears that February may have signaled the start of the spring market.  The 24 properties that went to contract was 64% higher than in 2015.  The median price however, from early sales is at a very low $538,000. That will likely change very quickly in the next few months, but does point to the activity in the lower end of the market in Weston. 

Wilton also had a low median price in February, but year to date is at $861,000, unchanged from last year.  Contract signing were at 28, up from 24 in February 2015.  Inventory remains higher than in a balanced market.

High performing Fairfield continues where it left off in 2015.  There have been 130 properties that have gone to contract thus far, compared to 78 last year, a whopping 66.7% increase. The 7.4 month inventory is the best in mid-Fairfield. The median price of $625,000 is up 12.1%.

Heating Up in May

In the month of May Weston had 35 properties go to contract compared to 15 in May 2014. In addition the median price in Weston has increased over 7% year to date to $850,000. Year to date 84 properties have gone to contract compared to 51 through the end of May 2014. Based on the current activity projected inventory is down over 60 per cent. 

Wilton also saw an increase of homes going to contract in May, with 55 homes accepting offers compared to 24 in the previous May. Year to date numbers in Wilton are slightly below Weston in percentage terms (up 38.4%), with 119 homes going to contract compared to 86 at this time last year. The median price in Wilton has also increased 9% to $829,000.

Fairfield had the smallest increase in May (up 112%) with 155 properties going to contract compared to 73, but this is still a considerable jump. For the year those numbers are up 41% putting it just below Weston in comparable sales volume increase. The median price has increased only 1.2% in Fairfield to only $556,000. It remains a target for first time home buyers and those looking to downsize in a beach community.

Westport also had good numbers in May with 76 properties going to contract compared to 33 in May 2014. Year to date ecrows stand at 174 compared to 154 at the end of May 2014. The median price in Westport has gone down by 5.4% to $1,250,000. These numbers are likely to shift as some more expensive homes change title. 

Fairfield and Weston have both seen closed sales that have been higher than in 2014. Weston is currently up 20.5% and Fairfield has seen an increase of 13.9%. Wilton’s closed sales are down 8.5% and Westport’s are off 20.5%. These sales figures in the early months of the year often represent activity from the end of the previous year. Based on the number of homes `currently under contract, and the large number of closings that typically take place in the summer months, we should be seeing a change in closed sale numbers shortly.

 

The current story of closed sales might indicate to the casual viewer that we are running behind 2014, but based on this month's activity it is likely that we will catch up to 2014 by summer's end.  Whether the final year end results will equal 2014 will depend somewhat on the post-summer activity.  Based on the number of buyers that continue to look through sources like Listingbook, Zillow, Trulia, etc.

I would expect that there will be a relatively strong autumn market based on the delay of the typical spring market and the fact that May has been such a strong month.

Another element to watch are the slowly rising interest rates, to see if buyers will react to these numbers.

April 2015 Sees Advances

April 2015 saw frigid temperatures for most of the month, but statistically it was a hot month. The biggest winner for the month was the town of Fairfield with 137 homes going to escrow. an increase of 114 per cent over the previous April.  To give a sense of what this means, this number is greater than sales in a town like Weston for an entire year.   Of course Fairfield is approximately 5 times bigger than Weston, but even in those terms it is impressive. Year to date Fairfield has 38% more contracts than at this time last year.  Closed sales are up 8.7%, but those numbers should jump in the coming months.  The median price is running at $550,000 so most of these sales are at an entry level.

Westport also had a good month, seeing 54 properties going to contract (versus 34 in April 2014), yet year to date Westport is slightly behind 2014. The median price is also lagging behind 2014 numbers, now sitting at $1,250,000, a decrease of 7.4%.

April was another good month for Weston.  Monthly escrows were up 87% and closed sales thus far are almost 18% above 2014 levels.  The median price has increased modestly (2.9%) to $799,000, but there have been some breakthroughs on higher end inventory.  Year to date escrows are up 47.6% so Weston has definitely turned the corner from the slowdown of a few years ago.

Wilton continues to be a solid performer.  37 properties went to contract in April compared to 21 in April 2014, and for the year Wilton is up almost 23% on contracts, though closed sales are running 14% behind last year.

May has started off even hotter (in real estate and real terms) than April.  Many feel that this is the result of colder winter weather.  We will have to see what kind of legs this spring market has.

Close to Schools With an Inground Pool

This gracious colonial is set back beautifully in one of Weston's finest and most distinguished locations. The recently expanded and renovated kitchen, family room and mudroom provide an excellent layout with great space, comfortable rooms and maximum light. Easy access to the outdoors is obtained through one of the sets of French doors that lead to the patio and pool. Potential 5th bedroom on first floor. Meticulously maintained and includes a generator.
$1,280,000