Fairfield and Westport CT Real Estate Guide

Local insights on buying, selling, and living in Fairfield County

Author Archives: Luxury Coastal CT Real Estate Specialist Linda Raymond at William Raveis Southport


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Take Advantage of the Port Jeff Ferry, Plus an Update on our Local Housing Markets

Within convenient driving distance from Fairfield and Westport is the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Ferry, which runs year-round from Bridgeport Harbor to Long Island.

FERRY1

Many commuters use the ferry and enjoy its Internet access while traveling daily to and from work. But the ferry also makes for a fun ride across the Sound: and Port Jefferson on the other side offers a host of great restaurants and shops for an entertaining afternoon. Plus, kids ride free. If you have family across the water, as I do, you may already be a frequent sailor!

FERRY2

And now for a word on our local real estate market – 

“The market’s not that bad!” Bill Raveis CEO of William Raveis Real Estate said recently.

Westport sales year to date at the end of Q3 showed some improvements compared to last year even though the median price dipped a bit to $1,090,000 from $1,125,000. Sales increased by almost three percent and the months of supply dropped twenty-two percent from 15.5 down to 12 months.

In Fairfield the median sale price improved by more than seven percent by the end of Q3. The months of supply also improved, moving to 10.8 months from 12.4. Unit sales were down almost eleven percent as was the inventory.

The percentage of homes for sale with an accepted offer (binder) gives an idea of the activity to come and also a good reference to compare to the previous year. Accepted offers at the end of October were at the same level as in 2010 in both towns.

Four percent of the listings had binders in Westport and five percent in Fairfield. Binders peaked at nine and thirteen percent in Westport and Fairfield going into the spring market in early April. So binder activity was consistent last month with what we saw last year, and we should expect another spike before April next year. Take a look at the attachments to see the numbers and a list of third quarter sales.

As we approach the holiday season, we don’t expect to see peak numbers typical of springtime quite yet, but overall, sales and prices have been holding relatively steady. In support of a good season to come, Fairfield just earned second place ranking behind Greenwich in Connecticut Magazine’s “Rating the Towns” issue that was recently released. Westport is sure to follow suit in the next issue that ranks smaller towns. So it’s likely that sellers will find their buyers this season, and buyers will find their new dream home for the coming year!

Source: Raveis.com Local Housing Data, CMLS

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch November 10, 2011 at 5:20 am


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The Calm Before the Storm (Irene)… and a Quick Update on the Housing Market

I live a good 0.8 of a mile from the beach, so I wasn’t as concerned about flooding as I was about the wind.

By the look of Sasco Beach Friday at 7 p.m., it was hard to imagine the rough tides, flooding and high winds to come.

CALM 1   CALM 2

Nevertheless, I opted to pass the storm at my parent’s house in Westport. It so happened that our friends on Fairfield Beach Road were then able to spend Sunday night at our Fairfield house after returning from a Shelton hotel to find ample flooding around their home. The flooding extended more than a block inland from the shore!

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A bit less dramatic this week, was our Fairfield housing market.

With 495 single family homes for sale at the time of this post, the inventory was lower by nine houses compared to last month and five homes compared to last year at this time. Seven percent of the homes had accepted offers which was consistent with binder counts at the end of August in the past three years and just one percent less than in July. Sixty listings were under contract for pending sale. This count was down by 74 contracts last month but up by five contracts from last year. Eighteen new single family listings hit the market during past week, and many more will likely follow suit as we recover from Irene and head into back-to-school mode.

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch August 29, 2011 at 10:07 am


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Loyal Praying Mantis Loves Fairfield, Plus an Update on the Housing Market

The loyal Praying Mantis has returned to our front porch again this year!

I was working in the garden outside our front door on Sunday and suddenly felt something on my back, which I instinctively brushed off.  There on our front walk landed a beautiful bright green mantis. Oddly, every summer we see a mantis appear right at our front door. This year, he obliged me with a photo shoot and live video performance. Take a look…

The mantis knows a good town when he sees it!

PRAYING MANTIS

Let’s take a quick look at the Fairfield housing market. As of today (Aug. 16), we have 493 single family homes for sale, 34 (7%) of which have an accepted offer. This ratio of accepted offers to active listings has held steady over the last few weeks. Seventy-one more homes have a signed purchase contract.

Since January, 315 homes have sold compared to 422 during the same time frame last year, reflecting a 26-percent reduction. However, the average sale price during this time was $690,000, which is just 1 percent away from the average sale price  of $698,000 last year.

The average sale-price-to-list-price-ratio for these transactions was 94 percent last year and 95 percent this year — indicating an improvement. Attached is a chart showing how many homes sold in each Fairfield market area.

Sales by Market Area Aug 2011If you would like to see an upcoming blog post with a breakdown of sales activity in your market area, just send me a note!

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch August 17, 2011 at 9:30 am


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Fantastic Fairfield Fireworks & A Housing Market Update

What a fantastic evening for the Fairfield fireworks last night!

After attending a picnic with some fine company and delicious dining, my husband and I visited more friends on the beach for the remainder of the evening. Low tide provided extra space on the sand bars this year for added festivities and some pre-show fireworks. As the warm pastel sunlight faded to dusk, the bejeweled horizon of sparkling lights from boats and waterfront homes became the new feature.

Once darkness fell, the DJ from the party next door created the perfect moment when he sang his own blues-inspired rendition of America the Beautiful just as the spectacular fireworks display was launched from the barge off Jennings Beach. Ah, there’s nothing like the Fourth of July in Fairfield!

Of course we’re all back to work now, so let me provide an update on the housing market for you – As of today, we have 491 single-family homes and 85 condos for sale in Fairfield, down from the count in my last post on June 22. However, there has been a jump since then in the number of binders and contracts, which is a positive sign.

One of the metrics I like to watch as a leading indicator of what’s to come is the percentage of active listings with a binder. A little over a week ago, 10% of the homes for sale had an accepted offer. At the time of this post, there are 70 homes with a binder equating to 14% of the available homes. Considering that the ratio had been 12-13% this spring in March through May, this is quite encouraging! The number of contracts is currently 133, also up from 105 a little more than a week ago.

Three more homes have sold since I last wrote, ranging in price from $450,000 to $875,000. The tally of sold homes in June recorded as of today is 23, with an average sale price of $600,000. Although there are sure to be more June sales recorded in the next few weeks, we are still quite far off from the single-family sales in June 2010 which totaled 71 with an average sale price of $658,000.

Okay, so who is ready to jump into the market to buy and sell, and catapult our numbers for July?!

Fairfield Boaters july 4 2011 Fairfield Beach & Barge July 4 2011

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch  July 5, 2011 at 5:38 pm

 


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A Great Meal and a Market Update!

My husband and I earned a little ‘found’ time for a dinner out over the weekend when our nine year old daughter, Emerson, was invited to her friend’s house at the beach.  We went to Martel on the Post Road in Southport. My husband is a big fan of the Martel Meatloaf, but I have to say that the Trout Meuniere with haricots verts & white bean salad is absolutely delicious! I highly recommend it, especially if you want to eat healthy. Of course, if you’re looking for something rich and decadent, you must try their Cheese Fondue for Two!   Martel Logo

So, what’s happening in Fairfield’s housing market? We currently have 507 single family homes and 91 condos on the market. With 201 sales in the past six months, this equates to an average of 34 sales per month and a 15-month supply of single family homes for sale. A six-month supply indicates a balanced market and less than this indicates a seller’s market, so we are still clearly in a strong buyer’s market.

Nine homes have sold in June so far, ranging in price from $197,500 for a home on Rakoczy Avenue to $750,000 for a home on Collingwood. This puts the average sale price this month so far at $478K. Looking ahead, 105 more homes are under contract and ready to close! Forty of these are priced up to $500K, 19 are in the $500K-$700K range, 21 are in the $700K-$900K range, eight are listed between $900K and $1mil, 14 are in the $1mil-$2mil range and three are listed above $2mil. In addition, 49 homes are under binder with an accepted offer, including a property on Senate Lane listed for $5mil.

So we should expect to see an increase in sales ranging through all the price points in the next month or so.

Is there something specific you are wondering about in Fairfield’s real estate market? Enter a comment below with your question, and I’ll do my best to respond in my next blog post!

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch June 23, 2011 at 1:11 amMartel Logo Halloween Party 2008 012


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3 Cool Tips & Your Fairfield Housing Market Update

Well I was away in the Cayman Islands last week for the first vacation alone with my husband in 10 years since our daughter was born!  (She was at sleep-away camp.)  Now that I’m back, I have three random bits of advice to offer that you may find useful:

1) My GasBuddy.com App tells me that the cheapest gas can currently be found at The Sunoco Station at 322 Post Rd East in Westport for $3.969 per gallon and Gulf at 975 Kings Highway East and Chambers in Fairfield for $3.979 per gallon.   GAS LADY

2) Remember to register your child for the fall soccer season at the Fairfield Recreation Center before the end of July to ensure a spot on the their team from last year.  And last but not least,

3) I would highly recommend Zumba on Thursday morning at 11:30 with John L. and Monday and Tuesday nights with Kellie B. at 8pm at the Edge in Fairfield. It’s a great workout mixed into an entertaining fiesta with men and women of all shapes and sizes!

ZUMBA LADY

Finally, a word on the market-  We currently have 503 single family homes for sale in Fairfield.  This inventory level has held steady since May but is lower than the May – July levels in both 2010 and 2009 which had ranged from about 580 to 515 homes for sale.

The end of the second quarter resulted in 149 sales with an average sale price of $663,000 and a median of $565,000.  In the same timeframe of 2010 we saw 220 sales with an average sale price of $734,000 and a median of $569,000.  Last year’s average sale price was artificially inflated by a six million dollar sale on Harbor Road, but the median was very close to what we have seen this year.  The number of sales dipped 32% though.  This may become a less extreme difference as more June sales are recorded.

As the summer heats up and people take vacations, the housing market typically slows down.  Binders and contracts are both down since my July 5th post.  The tally of single family homes with an accepted offer (binder) is 34 today which equates to seven percent of the active listings. This is down from 14% at the time of my last post.  There are 84 homes with purchase contracts in place which is also down from 133 a couple of weeks ago.  On a positive note, the price of homes under contract ranges from $140,000 all the way up to $5,500,000 demonstrating that there is something for everyone here in town!   SOLD PIC

So after all your summer travels are over, remember to focus on housing again, and re-energize your buying and selling agendas!

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch  July 25, 2011 at 12:03 am