Fairfield and Westport CT Real Estate Guide

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


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Annie and Andrew’s Story

 

Annie & Andrew

A seasoned recruiter for a financial firm on Merritt 7 in Norwalk Connecticut, Annie knew a good candidate when she saw one.   The perfect asset for the current position was one she had already recruited once before, and that would be her husband!  Given their relationship, Annie’s boss had to step in and seal the deal, but Andrew was on board in no time.

The next step was to move from their home in Avon to a town closer to Norwalk that was affordable and had good schools.  Annie’s boss lived in Fairfield and was a strong advocate.  She convinced Annie and Andrew that this town would fit the bill.

So Annie and Andrew’s agent in Avon called me to help them find a new home in Fairfield.  We spoke on the phone, and I set up their online search.   Immediately Annie saw something she liked and came to see it the next day.  Andrew couldn’t get free until the weekend, and by then the house was gone.  Three more times, the timing was too late or multiple bids got in the way, and three more homes were lost. Homes in their price range in the Fairfield university area were in extremely high demand and flying off the shelf!

New Home in Fairfield

Although Andrew liked the homes he had seen, he was still having a little trouble understanding the value for the prices in Fairfield compared to Avon.  Annie and I gushed about the treasured amenities in Fairfield such as the gorgeous beaches, convenient train stations, chic eateries, vicinity to Manhattan and the fantastic vibrant community. I wish I had this video tour of Fairfield at the time! Still, Andrew just shrugged his shoulders and went with the flow, primarily motivated by a quick commute.  

Finally, a lovely pricier home had a price reduction.  We immediately went to see it and this time lucked out.  Annie and Andrew landed a beautiful expanded Cape on a pretty university area street.  They lost no time starting to make memories with their little son George, their new neighbors and all the block parties scheduled for the year.

A short time later, Annie sent me a note that said, “Hi Linda, we love the house, and we have fallen in love with Fairfield.  We have only been in the house a little over a month, but it truly feels like home, and I would say George agrees!  We cannot thank you enough for all of your help. You were terrific to work with, patient and helped us every step of the way. Relocating to a new area is overwhelming, and you really made us feel at ease throughout the whole process.  Thanks again for everything.  We hope to see you around town!”

So we welcome Annie and Andrew to Fairfield and the university area along with some of our other recent new neighbors, Ping and Danian and Rich and Chris.  Annie and Andrew’s story is all about taking that leap toward the next chapter of exciting new beginnings- A new love. A new job. A new town. A new home.  Follow your dreams, and the rest is history in the making!

For questions about your next move, contact me any time!

If you're thinking of moving in the next 12 months, call now for your free consultation -> 203-912-4440

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Realtor Helps with All New “CKC” Salon in Fairfield: Cut. Keratin. Color!

Remember the fun and adorable couple, Michael and Ella from HGTV?  If you missed the original airing of their eposide, it’s airing again September 19th at 9:00 AM on HGTV’s House Hunters Renovation, “An Old House Gets a New Master Plan”.  Click here for a description and show times.

Michael on HGTV's House Hunter's Renovations

Michael on HGTV’s House Hunter’s Renovations

Well Michael and Ella have been back in action with a new endeavor!  About a month ago, Michael called me and said they wanted a new space for Ella’s hair salon.  They wanted to create an all new CKC salon in Fairfield where their clientele could better enjoy a cut, keratin and colour.  Their current CKC was outgrowing its space, and business was booming!

So I ran a search, and the perfect opportunity surfaced.  The owner of a struggling salon business wanted to call it quits and move to Florida making her space available for lease!  It was an ideal property- in a nice busy plaza on the Post Road in Fairfield with plenty of visibility and parking.  The space was a step up in size and amenties but not too big.  It had all the necessary mechanicals and just needed a face lift.

CKC salon & Keratin bar

CKC salon & Keratin bar

We set to work on negotiations, and within a couple of weeks CKC salon & Keratin bar opened its doors in a glamorous new home!

First where they live, then where they work, Michael and Ella have done complete make-overs in their new spaces. For their new salon, they opened-up walls, infused a fresh chic style and brought in all new furnishings!

Now clients enjoy a bright, airy and elegant atomosphere where they are treated like honored guests.  When they come, they can get a specialized Brazilian Keratin treatment for an unbelievable smooth shiny finish as well a precision cut and colour.

I’m lucky enough to have been one of the first customers at the NEW CKC salon, and they were lining up behind me!  Be sure to visit online and in person for your appointment.

CKC salon & Keratin bar
254 Post Road

Fairfield, Connecticut  06824
ckcsalon.com
ckcsalon@gmail.com
(203) 292-5835

CKC salon & Keratin bar

CKC salon & Keratin bar

Photo Aug 13, 3 49 05 PM

CKC salon & Keratin bar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always, contact me any time for your real estate needs, or even if you just want to hear more about CKC salon & Keratin bar!

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How’s the Summer Real Estate Market 2015 in Fairfield and Westport CT

So how’s the summer real estate market in Fairfield and Westport Connecticut? Are sellers listing their homes?  Are buyers making offers?  Here’s the summer 2015 scoop in Fairfield and Westport with a spotlight on the Fairfield beach and Greens Farms areas.

As of last week, there were a lot of single family homes on the market in Fairfield, 633 to be exact, compared to 542 at the end of July last year!  Fourteen percent (14%) of these houses had accepted offers. This is great compared to only 9% with binders last July.

The beach area market was not quite as strong as the town-wide market, with 12% of listings securing offers.  However, this ratio was more positive than last summer when the beach area’s home sellers accepting offers matched the town-wide tally of 9%. Of the 15 beach area homes with offers, seven were priced over $1 million, four were between $600,000 and $1 million and four were under $600,000. So there was a good range of prices.

Re-incarnation in the Fairfield Beach Area

Click Image for Flipogram!

845 Fairfield Beach Rd

Click Image for Full Listing!

Beach area new construction was exceeding the town’s ratio, with five accepted offers out of 30 listings, or 17%.  Click the image above for a representative view of the construction going on all over the beach area right now.  Direct waterfront in the beach area demonstrated more sluggish activity than the rest of the beach area and town with a 10% ratio of offers to active listings, that’s 4 out of 39.

Westport inventory was also high with 402 houses for sale compared to about 350 in July last year.  This season’s market was slightly more positive than in July 2014 with 7% of listings taking offers compared to 6%.

Greens Farms was a hot subset of the Westport market, with 12% of the 49 listings securing acceptable offers.  Half of the six offers were listed above $1 million and half below.

2 Hedley Farms Rd

New construction listings in Greens Farms weren’t moving as fast as the rest of the neighborhood with one binder out of 12 listings, or 8%.

So yes, sellers are listing their homes, and buyers are bidding on them.  The ratio of accepted offers to active listings is a leading indicator of what’s to come, and this summer it’s shown variablility based on town, neighborhood, and property type.
As always, pricing your home competitively and staging it for maximum appeal will attract buyers to your listing.  There’s still time before August vacations to get your price right if you’re selling and get your bid in if you’re buying.  Be sure to check out the featured homes for sale below!

Buy one this summer!

Buy one this summer!

New Construction on the Beach, Fairfield – $2,545,000 New price!
Summer Beach Cottage, Fairfield – $1,245,000 New price!
Carefree Beachfront Condo, Fairfield – $915,000 See Quick-Film!
Like-New Home at the Beach, Lordship – $879,000 New Price!
Bright Beach Area Colonial, Fairfield – $625,000 Off the market, sale pending!
Charming Cape, Convenient Location, Fairfield –  Off the market to be rented starting October 1st.

Feel free to contact me any time with questions, showing requests or for a complimentary market analysis of your home.

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Open House Dates and Property News!

Hi All,

I wanted to alert you to a couple of Open House and property updates. Click the images for more info.

There will be an Open House Sunday, January 24th, 2016,  from 1 to 3 pm at 25 York Street in Lordship / Stratford. This home sits across from Russian Beach with water views from every room and is minutes to Short Beach with the gorgeous golf course, as well as Long Beach. Asking price is $859,000.

SUNDAY OPEN HOUSES!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For turnkey and carefree living at the beach, consider 10 Pine Creek Avenue 401W at Kensie Point.  The next open house will be February 28, 2016, from 1 to 3 pm. This is beachfront living at it’s best with water views from every room and four balconies, elevator access right to your foyer, two bedrooms two full baths, an office space, central air and a furnished private beach garden- all for $845,000.

10 Pine Creek Ave 401W at Kensie Point

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contact me anytime with questions or to request a showing!

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How Could the “Wrong Direction” Seem So Right?

That’s what my relocation client asked me as we went to visit five drop-dead gorgeous homes in Fairfield Connecticut.

Ping and her family were moving from South Carolina to pricey Fairfield County.  Although the home sizes were not quite as grand here as what they were used to, I could sense a growing excitement about Fairfield as I shared some impressive numbers including our 11 elementary, three middle and two high schools, five beaches and three train stations.

The Chelsea Restaurant, Fairfield CT

The Chelsea Restaurant, Fairfield CT

A few added highlights like our huge Fourth of July celebration at Penfield Beach, the superb beet salad at The Chelsea and the crazy dog beach at Lake Mohegan didn’t hurt either.   The visual tour was the icing on the cake!

Ping and her husband Danian both worked for the same company in South Carolina.  She took a new job nearby, and he was able to stay with his company and transfer here. Their son and daughter would be going to elementary school.

New home in Fairfield CT

New home in Fairfield CT

The location of the home they chose in the university area was perfect.  Their kids could walk to school.  And when Danian’s parents came to visit, they could walk there with them. They were situated on a wonderful cul-de-sac and already had an elaborate play set in the back yard.  The house was stunning inside and out.  It was beautifully finished on four levels and came complete with a beautiful in-law suite.  And if all that wasn’t enough, the garage was fully equipped with cabinetry and a high-end custom flooring that looked like you could eat off it!

How can something so wrong seem so right?   Welcome to Fairfield!

Congratulations

Congratulations!

Feel free to comment on this post and reach out to me with your questions and real estate needs. – Linda

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Homeowner Use of Social Media: Lifeline or Liability?

Most of us use social media networks like Facebook as a convenient go-to tool for fun, entertainment, communication, sharing, advice and recommendations.  And it’s a great way to get some instant gratification for all of these things.    Buyers Browse Facebook

But most of us also know there can be a dark side to these perks. We’ve all heard about the folks who’ve shared embarassing moments and pictures online that they’ve since regretted.  Once it’s out there on the web, it’s likely to always be out there on the web… somewhere.

Well, if you are a homeowner seeking advice or recommendations for repairs to your home, remember the point above.  If you illustrate a leak in your dining room ceiling in a photograph on the world wide web, remember that it will still be out there when you ultimately decide to sell your home.  Not that there is any harm done here.  However, if you present an important issue with your house online such as a leak, or a mold problem, etc., be sure to disclose it when you sell.   In Connecticut the Department of Consumer Protection requires sellers to complete a residential property disclosure report for potential buyers or pay a penalty of $500 at closing.

Buyers are excited, curious, nervous and saavy people… as well as frequent users of the internet. They might just be browsing your social networks.  If your leaky ceiling issue is disclosed on Facebook, but not on the required property disclosure when you sell, you could heading for trouble.  If you try to conceal an existing issue with your house, there is risk for liability.

So think about what you post online when it comes to your home repairs, and remember what you posted when it’s time to sell your house.  If the problem has been repaired, that’s great, your buyers will be happy to know about it!

Feel free to contact me any time with questions about buying or selling a home!   -Linda

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Pricing Your Home Right

Here are a few true stories that occurred in May of 2015.  Three comparable university area homes for sale in Fairfield Connecticut accepted offers.  The properties and prices were similar in scope, but the paths the sellers took to get an offer were quite different.   I’ll assign each house a color instead of using the address to protect privacy.  I am privy to the information because my buyers bid on all three of these homes.

White House

A White house with 2,293 square feet, four bedrooms and two and a half baths on .31 acres came on the market for $675,000 the previous November.  The listing canceled and put back on the market as a new listing for the same price in January 2015.  Over the next 130 days the price was reduced to $669,000 and then 649,000.  It was newly listed again in May for $625,000.  The sellers accepted an offer of $610,000 which was 97% of their final asking price but 90% of their original price from more six months prior.

green house

A Green house was listed in March for $650,000.  It had 2,352 square feet, two and a half baths on .49 acres.  The price was reduced to $619,000 and then to $610,000 and was ultimately re-listed with a new price of $600,000. Less than two weeks later, the sellers received multiple full price offers for $600,000.  The sellers got 100% of their final asking price, but 92% of their original list price.

On May 12, homeowners listed a Red house for sale with 2,164 square feet, three bedrooms and two baths on .22 acres for $619,000 and accepted an offer the next day!

Since the two homes above sold for 97-100% of their final asking price, and the average sale-list ratio in Fairfield from January to mid-May was 97%, my guess is that the sellers got very close to their asking price, and in one day, not bad!REd House

So what are the take-aways?

Price: You won’t get more by pricing your house much higher than market value.  Remember you have to sell your house three times- to the buyer’s agent, to the buyer, and to the appraiser. Buyers may be attracted to your house based on emotion, but their final decision is based on the market data that their Realtor provides to them.

Time: The higher above market value you price your house, the longer it will take to sell, and remember, time is (taxes, utilities, insurance, repairs, maintenance, personal time and energy…) money!  The stories above show that in this price range, a list price of 8-10% above the market value is too high to attract an offer.

Since the market is what determines your property’s value, not your personal finances (or Zillow!), price your house within 5% of, or right at market value.  This way you can enjoy a fast sale at a fair market price, and get to where you want to go sooner rather than later!

Feel free to contact me for a pricing recomendation and custom marketing plan or any questions you may have about the buying and selling process.   I’m here to help!

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Last Local Housing Market Update for the Year, Plus Some Holiday Bloopers!

As we head towards the final holiday week before the New Year, I wanted to give you the current housing market snapshot.   I’ll give you the full-year summary once we are well into Q1 of 2015 and all the numbers are in.  So here’s the scoop for now-

Inventory of homes for sale was up in Fairfield (21%), Westport (16%) and Weston (6%) at the end of November compared to 2013.

Sales were down in Fairfield (-25%) and Weston (-30%), but up thirteen percent in Westport compared to November last year.

Even though sales dipped in Fairfield in November, the average days on market was 24% less than it was a year ago (99 vs. 131).  However the average market time was up nineteen and twenty percent respectively in Weston and Westport.

Click here to see tables with more detailed information. Let’s see what happens in the New Year.   My phone has been known to ring on January 1!

In the spirit of holiday entertaining fun, why not enjoy some cooking bloopers from Martha Stewart. Happy Holidays, and send in any questions or request you may have below!

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Linda Raymond, Realtor
William Raveis Real Estate
2525 Post Road
Southport, CT 06890
203-912-4440 direct


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Fabulous Beachfront Condo – Now Live on MLS!

10 Pine Creek Avenue 401W, Fairfield CT

10 Pine Creek Avenue 401W, Fairfield CT

Live the sweet life in your new carefree ranch style beachfront condo at Kensie Point! Decks and penthouse-like water views from all rooms, elevator entry, private furnished beachfront garden, set on town-managed Pine Creek Beach. Near‪#‎town‬ and ‪#‎train‬, an hour from ‪#‎NYC‬. Two bedrooms, two full baths, 1900 square feet updated and move-in ready. Now live on MLS, check out the listing right here!  ‪#‎coastalconnecticut‬ ‪#‎ilovefairfieldct‬ ‪#‎beaches‬ ‪#‎condos‬‪#‎ranches‬ ‪#‎multiplelistingservice‬ ‪#‎fairfieldctbeaches‬ #‎fairfield‬ #‎investment‬ ‪#‎commuters‬ #retirementhomesct

LoPumpkin Houseoking at unit sales and the average sale price for single family homes in Westport, Weston and Fairfield, there appeared to be a similar trend across the three markets as of the end of September.    Unit sales were down, but the average sale price was up.

In Westport, there were 26 sales in September which was down from 39 from last year and 50 in the previous month.  Year to date sales were 291, down 19.6% from 362 last year at this time.  However the average sale price in September was $1,510,448 which was up 5.7% from last September.  So far this year, the average sale price was $1,566,866 which was 1.9% higher than last year.

There were 54 sales in Fairfield in September which was well below the 77 units in August but just 1.8% below the 55 sales in September 2013.  Year-to-date sales were down 7.6% with 523 vs. 566 last year.  Prices followed a very similar trend to Westport with the year over year value up 5.9% for the month of September and just a slight increase of 1.6% for the year to date average sale price of $723,563.

Weston had the most significant reduction in unit sales of the three towns in the month of September but showed a better tally for the year to date.  With seven sales in September compared to 16 the previous year and 21 in August, the good news was that for the year to date, sales were down just 11.6% (122 vs. 138).   The average price for sales in September was down slightly from August and down 12.8% from last September but followed the trend of the other two towns for the year to date average price, with a small increase over 2013 of 1.8%, resulting in $882,423.

Fall Image 2

Let’s wait and see if the activity catches up to last year.  Tell all your friends that are thinking about moving to go ahead and do it!  In the meantime, click to see a table of all the Housing Market Numbers each month from 2013 to 2014 through September.

If you would like specific market numbers on a neighborhood near you, just send a request below, and I’ll be happy to provide you with the information.

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