Houlihan Lawrence has released its report on the luxury housing markets during the second quarter of 2020 in Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess and parts of Connecticut.
While some of the statistics show gains, others indicate softness. Houlihan’s analysis found, “Luxury home sales north of NYC performed remarkably well despite the ‘pause’ in New York state and restrictions in Connecticut for most of the second quarter. The luxury buyer has emerged with a new set of wants and needs that reflect a change in lifestyle and professional expectations in a post-COVID world.”
Anthony P. Cutugno, senior vice president of Houlihan Lawrence Private Brokerage, said in a statement, “For now, it appears that the 2020 spring market, which coincided with the start of the shutdown, had a late start. Is this a moment in real estate or a structural shift with long lasting implications? It is too soon to tell. Meaningful insights will be gleaned from third quarter closed sales data, reflecting much of the activity that began in earnest in May when the (COVID-19) curve flattened.”
In Westchester, luxury home sales for the second quarter in the price range of $2 million to $2.9 million were off by 26% from the second quarter of 2019. There were 51 luxury houses sold in the second quarter of 2020 compared with 69 in the same period last year.
The Westchester market did better at the higher end, with a 13% increase in home sales in the $3 million to $4.9 million price range. There were 17 units sold in the second quarter of this year versus 15 in last year’s second quarter. There was a 66% increase in the $5 million to $9.9 million range, with five units sold in the second quarter of 2020 compared with three in the second quarter of 2019.
In Putnam and Dutchess, the number of homes sold in the $1 million to $1.9 million price range doubled, with eight sold in the second quarter of 2020 versus four in the second quarter of 2019.
In Greenwich, Conn., there were 26 houses sold in the $3 million to $3.9 million price range, the lowest luxury price range Houlihan Lawrence showed for that community. It was a 36% increase from the 19 houses sold in the second quarter a year ago. The number of houses sold in the $4 million to $4.9 million price range dropped 30%, from 10 in the second quarter of 2019 to seven in this year’s second quarter. The same number of houses, 11, were sold in the $5 million to $9.9 million price range in the second quarters of 2019 and 2020.
There was a 200% increase in sales of $10 million and up, with three houses sold in that price range during the second quarter of 2020 compared with just one sale in that range during last year’s second quarter.
In Darien, there was a 14% drop in sales in the $2 million to $2.9 million price range from 14 in the second quarter of 2019 to 12 in this year’s second quarter. Sales in the $3 million to $4.9 million price range went up by 40% from five to seven, while there were no sales from $5 million and up compared with one in the $5 million to $9.9 million price range during the second quarter of 2019.
There were no luxury sales reported in Rowayton in the second quarter of 2020, compared with one in the $2 million to $2.9 million price range in last year’s second quarter.
In New Canaan, sales in the $2 million to $2.9 million price range went up 7% from 13 to 14. There was a 50% increase from two to three home sales in the $3 million to $4.9 million price range for the second quarter of 2020 as compared with the same period last year.
Houlihan Lawrence said that the total dollar volume for luxury houses in Westchester during the second quarter of this year was $213,384,575, a 15.2% drop from 2019’s second quarter volume of $245,831,769. In Putnam and Dutchess, there was a 503.6% increase from $5,183,500 to $31,288,250.
In Greenwich, total luxury home dollar volume was up 14.2% from $201,065,000 to $229,685,750. In Darien, dollar volume was down 5.2% from $58,184,500 in the second quarter of 2019 to $55,147,500 in this year’s second quarter. New Canaan saw a 32.9% increase from $38,824,000 in last year’s second quarter to $51,615,150 this year.
Cutugno said, “The lower end of the luxury market is gaining the most strength and buyers remain value driven. Buyers are motivated and interest rates are historically low. However, if a listing is languishing on the market in this low inventory environment, unrealistic pricing is the likely cause.”
