Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors sees low inventory, vibrant market

The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors released its data on third-quarter residential sales in the lower Hudson Valley with the report concluding that the housing market “remains vibrant, experiencing modest, but sustainable, gains.”

The report said single-family residential sales for the third quarter of 2019 were on a “solid footing” in the area. It showed a 1% gain in unit sales from the same period a year ago in Westchester County while Orange County”™s sales increased by 2.5%. Rockland County”™s sales were up 8.1% and sales in Putnam County went up 8.4%.

Median sale prices for single-family homes in the various counties were either unchanged or modestly higher in the third quarter compared with the same period last year. Westchester rose from $678,500 to $699,000. In Rockland, the median sale price remained at $475,000. Putnam”™s median sale price grew from $360,000 to $373,000. The median in Orange County increased from $275,000 to $288,000.

Sales of two- to four-family houses in Westchester went up from 167 in the third quarter of last year to this year”™s 177. Condominium sales rose from 401 last year to 414 in this year”™s third quarter. Sales of co-ops, however, dropped from 545 sold during the third quarter of 2018 to 455 this year.

The decrease in co-op numbers resulted in overall residential sales in Westchester decreasing 1.6%.

In Rockland, sales of two- to four-family houses fell to 23 units compared with last year”™s 28. Co-op sales were off with 19 sold in this year”™s third quarter compared with 20 in 2018. Condominium sales dropped to 144 from 170 in the third quarter of 2018.

Residential sales overall were up 6% in Putnam, 2.1% in Rockland, 1.5% in Orange and 1.8% in Sullivan.

The number of residential units sold in the third quarter of 2019 totaled 5,765. In Westchester, 2,985 were sold. Orange was in second place with 1,305 units sold. Rockland followed with 829 residential units sold in the third quarter of this year while Putnam had 370 and Sullivan County had 276.

HGAR said low inventory continues to hinder sales growth in the region.

“With a low inventory, buyers often find it difficult to find housing that fits their criteria,” the report stated.

The report made note of unemployment remaining at historic lows in the region and ongoing economic development activity such as the building of the Legoland theme park in Orange County and a planned Lionsgate movie and TV studio in Yonkers.