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Sales were especially solid in the county’s Southwestern section, including Stamford, Darien, New Canaan and Rowayton. Sales climbed 35 percent in Darien, 20.93 percent in New Canaan, 6.67 percent in Rowayton and 10.39 percent in Stamford.
The median sale price rose 14.4 percent in Stamford, but all of the other communities saw declines. The MSP fell 4.27 percent in Darien, 9.81 percent in New Canaan and 15.12 percent in Rowayton.
There was also a surge in new listings in each of the communities. In New Canaan, 254 homes came to market in the first quarter, an increase of 17 percent from the first quarter last year. Stamford (13.78 percent increase), Darien (22.48 percent) and Rowayton (20 percent) also saw a healthy rise in inventory.
Overall in Fairfield County, the real estate market appears to be holding steady. The median sale price rose 2.25 in the first quarter compared to the same quarter last year, and days on market declined four percent. There were more than 5,000 new listings in the first quarter, an increase of more than 17 percent from the first quarter last year.
"There's a healthy level of buyer demand right now,'' said Joe Valvano, President of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Connecticut and Westchester County. "Consumer confidence is steady. Employment has improved. Interest rates have remained low. It was a very good first quarter, especially compared to last year. The spring market was pretty late getting started last year because of the weather."
The median sale price for Darien and New Canaan has been hurt by a drop in high-end home purchases. First-time home buyers are moving into the market, but pricier homes are slow to move.
“The high-end segment of the market is not moving as quickly as we would have hope all over Fairfield County,’’ said Brad Kimmelman, brokerage manager for William Pitt Sotheby’s in Fairfield and Southport. “ If those homeowners want to sell, they will have to make price adjustments. If they bring prices in line, we’ll start to move that high end inventory, which we need to move.”
Click here for the first quarter report from Coldwell Banker.
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