home sales prices rise again in the hudson valley as buyers seek larger space outside NYC
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By Michael P. McKinney | Published on October 11, 2021
Westchester’s median single-family home sale price rose to $855,000 from the $810,000 in 2020’s Q3
Lower Hudson Valley home sale prices continued their rise over the summer, a real estate trade group's new report says.
In Westchester, Putnam and Rockland counties in particular, the increases came on the heels of a pandemic-driven buying surge for larger spaces outside of New York City.
The median sales price for single-family houses rose in 2021's third quarter compared to the same July-through-September period last year, including from Westchester to Putnam to Rockland, according to the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors.
The trend continued even as real estate professionals say there's been less inventory of homes available on the market.
In Westchester, the number of single-family home sales rose 9% to 2,377 in the third quarter, from 2,181 over the same three months in 2020, the HGAR report showed.
“While New York City is offering attractive pricing and experiencing increased buyer activity, helping to fuel its recovery, many buyers desire more square footage, outdoor space, and the respite that our counties offer,” Liz Nunan, Houlihan Lawrence president and CEO, said in a statement. “It is yet to be determined what percentage of the workforce will continue to work from home, be it full-time or part-time, but the ability to do so comfortably remains top of mind for today’s buyers.”
Some areas, such as Orange and Sullivan counties, recorded fewer sales but still reached higher median sales prices. The realtors association attributed lower numbers of sales to a smaller number of homes on the market.
“I still think that we’re going to have a robust market going into next year,” said Crystal Hawkins-Syska, HGAR president.
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Westchester’s median single-family home sale price rose to $855,000 from the $810,000 during 2020’s third quarter, the HGAR report says. Dollar-wise, that topped the Lower Hudson Valley, which saw the median home sales price during the same period:
In Putnam, increase 13.3% to $466,500, from $411,750.
In Rockland, increase 13.5% to $579,000, from $510,000.
In Orange, increase 16.7% to $385,000, described as an historic high, from $330,000.
In Sullivan, increase 25.8% to $250,250 from $199,000.
In Dutchess County, the median price for single-family detached homes sold during September 2021 rose 15% to $415,000 from the $361,000 for homes sold during September 2020, according to the Mid-Hudson Multiple Listing Service, which provided monthly sales reports but not quarterly.
Attached single-family homes' median sales price increased 18.6% to $264,750 this September from $223,170 during last September.
The figures for median sales price and number of sales were also higher in July and August than the corresponding months a year ago, the Mid-Hudson Multiple Listing Service data showed.
Sales of multifamily homes also increased in number and in median price in nearly every county that HAGR covers.
Entering late 2021, there are some shifts and potential indicators to keep in mind, experts say.
Hawkins-Syska said there's been a a small uptick in buyers seeking to be closer to public transportation such as trains, something that had "literally dropped" earlier in the pandemic when being closer to an office "didn't even really matter at all." Potential for hybrid work schedules, in and out of the office each week, are playing a role now too.
But because people are still concerned whether COVID lockdowns could happen again, "the drive toward still having larger properties is still the case," Hawkins-Syska said.
Properties needing upgrades aren't selling as easily as they had, so "if it needs more work, there's definitely a slowdown," Hawkins-Syska said.
“For buyers, it's still very competitive — down payments make a difference, so buyers who have a lower down payment, they have to be patient," Hawkins-Syska said. They will be competing at times with people prepared to put more money down.
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Brokerage firm Houlihan Lawrence said in its third-quarter report that buyers have often competed this year for the same properties, and that the median sale price increased for the third quarter by 6% in Westchester, 14% in Putnam, and 18% in Dutchess.
Houlihan Lawrence said the number of sales:
In Westchester, increased by 8.2% for the third quarter and increased 28% this year.
In Putnam, rose 1% in the third quarter and 27% this year.
In Dutchess, declined 7.2% for the third quarter but are up 22% this year. Houlihan Lawrence attributed the Q3 sales decline to house inventory being down by 38% for the quarter.
Douglas Elliman Real Estate, which hasn't released its third-quarter report yet, put out data that showed a decrease in the number of signed Westchester contracts at various price points during September 2021 compared to those during September 2020.
"We had 925 new listings on the market; this year we had 425," Ferrari said. "The amount of new listings was down 54%: It's an exact correlation" with the smaller number of sales contracts signed this September, said Richard Ferrari, president and chief executive officer of Douglas Elliman’s New York City and Northeast Region brokerage.
Ferrari said the figures mean it can be a little more difficult to buy in Westchester than a year ago.
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"The demand is still there; the prices are still there — they're probably still increasing slightly higher," he said. "It remains a very strong and active market; it's probably one of the best times ever for a seller to put their home on the market because the inventory is so tight."
Ferrari said every market eventually has a leveling-off period, though that doesn't necessarily mean prices will come down. But the volume of transactions levels off.
"Whether that's six months or six years from now," he said, "nobody knows."