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Putnam County’s statistics reflected an overall trend for Westchester, Orange and Rockland Counties, which also saw some drops in sales and prices. In the four counties, there was a decrease of 9.2 percent in closings compared to the second quarter in 2013.
“The report accurately reflects what we’ve been seeing,’’ said Robert Morini, manager of the Houilihan Lawrence Brewster Brokerage. “We did not have much of a spring market. As everyone knows, we had a long winter and we thought we’d get a nice bump in the spring market. We didn’t get the bump we normally do. As a result, the inventory is beginning to grow."
Single-family home sales in Putnam County fell 6.6 percent compared to the same quarter last year, and the median sale price fell 8.2 percent to $285,000. The complete Hudson Gateway report is online.
Not all of the housing sectors declined in Putnam. Sales of multi-family homes jumped 500 percent, and prices rose 10 percent. Median sale prices on condominiums rose 11.6 percent, and the decline in units sold was just 3.7 percent, far less than the decline in sales of single family homes.
Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors President Diane Cummins said she thought second quarter sales would be lower due to the difficult winter. “In April I said I was encouraged by the first quarter numbers but I would expect a downturn based on the incredibly harsh winter,’’ Cummins said. “That’s exactly what happened. We’re going to need another quarter to tell us if this is a trend.”
The good news for Putnam and other counties is that there seems to be marketplace stability. Prices might fluctuate, but there have not been the wild swings that the real estate market saw between 2004-09.
“I’m happy the pricing is remaining realistic,’’ Cummins said. “In a way, maybe this is a healthy control factor in our return. There isn’t the irrational exuberance of past markets.”
Morini believes there are good values in Putnam communities, and hopes to see activity rebound for the rest of the year.
“We have not seen a major price bump and interest rates remain historically low,’’ Morini said. “We’re all optimistic and hoping for a good fall market.”
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