Fairfield and Westport CT Real Estate Guide

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

Tag Archives: Fairfield housing market


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Great Finds on Both Sides of Town!

Whether you know someone looking for a cute cape close to Black Rock Turnpike shopping and the new Fairfield Metro Center, or a proposed new construction on the beach near Fairfield’s bustling downtown scene and train, there’s a home for the taking!

Fairfield Metro StationHere are two featured properties for sale.  Scroll down for a link to browse all listings or request to have a search set up for you.

Beautiful Updated Cape, also for rent, in a super convenient location near ample amenities and the new train station! Some of the great features include three bedrooms, two full baths, vaulted ceiling family room with sliders, renovated kitchen, covered deck, central air, fully fenced and landscaped back yard with newly expanded shed and double driveways. Opportunity knocks!

A rare moment is here for you. Introducing Beach Life. Have your custom home built by world class craftsmen on a spectacular near-third acre stretch of beach with mature trees and high dunes! Deep sandy beach and 51 feet of beach frontage at the coast’s curve offer expansive views of the entire shoreline. Dreamy vistas of changing light, tides and the iconic Penfield Light House never lose their magic. Other multi-million dollar new homes nearby add to the great value and good company. Your home will be finished on three levels with a spacious carport underneath for two cars plus extra multi-use space and plenty of expansion potential. One of the very deepest and highest sections of beach five minutes from town, restaurants and train, and an hour from Manhattan is where you will call home. Get ready for your new beach life to begin!

Photo Oct 30, 11 37 20 AM    Photo Oct 30, 11 47 19 AM

 845 FFBR - elevation- 10 - 21 - 14  Photo Oct 30, 12 55 20 PM

 

 

 

 

Search for your home here or submit a request below.   I’m here to help. 🙂

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Dust and Pet Allergies? You Better Clean Your HVAC System!

I moved into my house 10 years ago and was wondering if getting all the dust and dirt out of the air ducts right out of the gate would be a good idea.  I always had allergies to dust and animals, and the previous owners had a cat.   After finding cat hair in the refrigerator, I figured there must be plenty in the air ducts!

But the days turned into months…. and 10 years later I’ve been thinking that cleaning my HVAC system is surely well past-due.   Then just as I was about to take action, I heard someone say that duct cleaning can actually loosen dust and make air quality worse.  I wanted to do whatever was likely to keep my surrounding air clean while spending as little money possible.  This article from House Logic had some helpful information that allowed me to be more comfortable with my decision to hold off again.

DUCTS

However, after several lousy nights of interrupted sleep due to clogged sinuses, I had to do something!

Air vent returns Before & After cleaning

Air vent returns Before & After cleaning

So I started by taking a quick look at the air vents and returns and the air filter even though it had been changed two month prior.  I was appauled by what I saw!  Filthy returns and a black air filter! No wonder dust was accumulating daily on every surface!  So I immediately changed the air filter and got on a ladder with my vacuum. What a difference this made!  Without cleaning my air ducts, the surfaces actually stayed clean, the air was cleaner, the furnace surely was running much more efficiently and as you may have expected, I had a great night’s sleep!

Feel free to comment or ask a question below.

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Find Your True Colors

Are you in the process of renovating, building new or just changing the colors in your home?  Maybe your room colors are still there from the first owners of your home and you would have changed them years ago if you only knew where to begin.

RUBIX CUBE

Check out these two great resources to help guide you to the perfect hue.  Start with a tour of different color schemes on HGTV’s website and how they create a range of energy levels or certain moods in various rooms.   Then visit Benjamin Moore’s site for a great downloadable guide to Color Language – Guide to Home Decorating.

You’ll find your true colors in no time, then go ahead and color your world!

COLORED PENCILS


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Visit this Lovely Fairfield Beach Area Home Sunday 10/5 Between 1 & 3 PM!

Come visit us and see this gorgeous home in the bustling Fairfield Beach area during our Open House tomorrow, Sunday October 5 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM!
Check all weekend O P E N   H O U S  E S here!

35 LALLEY
Request a showing or complimentary home valuation below.

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Quick Scoop on July’s Local CT Housing Markets

Word on the Street: Fairfield, Westport & Weston
2013 vs. 2014

House Clip Art

Just checking in with a quick report on the real estate markets in July before joining the masses and taking a little vacation-

We would expect the housing market to be seasonally slower in the months of July and August as people are in full summer mode and focused on enjoying the warm weather.  However, this July appeared to be slower than last July in Westport and Fairfield.  Weston was singing a different tune though-

In Fairfield, unit sales were down almost 43% from 122 to 70 last month.   The median (midpoint) sale price was also down 9% to $577,500.  The average time on market was up 9% to 97 days.   All this is good news for the buyers out there though since it affords them more bargaining power.    One measure that favored sellers was a 5% increase in the price per square foot from $290 to $305 of homes that sold.

Sales were also slower in Westport with a 6% reduction and 44 July closings.  The median sale price was $1,225,000, down almost 2% from last year.  Market time increased 37% to 101 days.  Yet the price per square foot increased 11% to $436.

Sellers take note: Weston rallied last month with numbers in your favor!  Unit sales were 24% higher this July with 31 compared to 25 last year. The median sale price was up 6% to $820,000.  Giving some leverage to buyers was market time up 40% to an average of 137 days and price per square foot down 3% to $257.

So that’s the quick scoop for now.  Check out the charts with more numbers and print this report following the link below.  I assume there will not be much change in pace next month, but I’m anticipating a rally in September and October when everyone works on making their moves before the holidays and cold weather take over.

Word on the Street Snapshot JULY 2014


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My Home is My Castle.

What is a castle?  In its most basic form, it’s a place that gives us security and privacy.

Home Sweet Home.  It’s the place we cherish, where we feel safe and sound, sometimes happy, other times sad; where we celebrate, gather together, share, work, create, cook, decorate; where we can love and be loved; where we live, grow, rest, dream, and at times sort through the chaos that life often throws at us!  After all, there’s no place like home !

Em 1st day 1st grade 8-30-07Home is a most important place and a most significant asset.   This is why I love to join my clients in the chapter of their lives when it’s time for their next castle.   It is a critical business transaction and a complex process, but most important, it’s an emotional, exciting and monumental time!  I am honored to share this time with my clients, buffer the anxiety,  guide the course and share the joy!

2012 Thanksgiving Dad Kids & CakeOur castles assume all shapes and sizes.   And in the grandest form, a castle is…. well big and grand! Enjoy this one in Darien, Connecticut.

Please share  a comment or image of a precious moment, space or place showing the essence of home for you!  I’ve posted a few of my own.

2011 The Black & White Crew

 

2011-05-31 09.28.10To see more about how I serve my clients, visit my websites at LindaRaymondRealEstate.com and Raveis.com/LindaRaymond .  Please send me a note below if I can assist you with the home of your dreams.

Sincerely,
Linda

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Beach Brief: Fairfield & Westport CT Housing Markets

As this week of perfect beach weather continues, it seems like a great time for an update on shoreline housing in Fairfield and Westport.

Direct beachfront property! Click for more pics.

Today, there are 80 single-family homes for sale in Westport in the coastal neighborhoods of Compo Beach, Saugatuck Shores and Hillspoint.  Twenty-seven of these properties are on direct waterfront.  Asking prices range from $525,000 to $12,985,000.  One listing has an accepted offer.

In Fairfield, there are 121 active listings in the Beach area and Sasco.   Thirty-three of the homes are directly on the water or beachfront.  Asking prices run the gamut from $260,000 to $62,000,000!  Sixteen of these listings have accepted offers.

For additional housing information or to request a showing, please inquire below.

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Flags at Penfield Beach, Fairfield, CT

Flags at Penfield Beach, Fairfield, CT


  Photo Jul 08, 11 32 10 AM   Photo Jul 08, 11 49 48 AM

Photo Jul 08, 11 50 23 AM


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Beach Area Housing Market Still Hot & the Buyers Are Out!

One might think that in the wake of the storm and with the approach of the holidays, the Fairfield beach area real estate market might be sluggish.

Not if the open house activity at a new beach area listing last Sunday was any indication!  A colonial farm house on Charles Street (see photo) had 17 buyer groups and one agent come for a look!  The home is on the market for $525,000 and located about a half a mile from town and a mile from the beach.

House Beach Grass Optimized 800x600

Another sign of market strength in the beach area is the reduced months of inventory.  This October there were just 10 months worth of homes for sale compared to last October when there were 23 months worth.  Months of inventory is calculated based on the number of active listings and the average rate of sales during the prior recent months.  Fewer months of inventory suggests that properties are selling and the market is healthier.

Last but not least, the median (midpoint) sale price of single family homes in the beach area has been rising since the low of $605,000 in 2010.  It reached $750,000 this year in October, approaching the 2007 level (see attached chart).  This shows that homes have been selling across a good range of price points, and it may even suggest that home values could be improving!

Fairfield Beach Area SF Median Sale Price Nov2012

So there you have some positive real estate news to be grateful for this Thanksgiving! Feel free to contact me any time to talk about your real estate questions and moving plans, 203-912-4440, linda.raymond@raveis.com. – Linda

Originally Posted on Fairfield Patch November 20, 2012 at 11:05 pm


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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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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