Ridgefield, CT Real Estate Market Report: Home Sales June 2008

June 10th, 2008 categories: Market Data & Statistics, Ridgefield, Talking Real Estate

Ridgefield Real Estate Market Commentary

May brought us into Ridgefield’s Spring real estate selling season. We continue to see a decline in the number of closed transactions from the previous year, down by almost half compared to May, 2007 and down about 35% year-to-date. After a few months of decline, one measure of price levels, price-per-square-foot, has rebounded to $287 on average - back in line with historical levels of the past couple of years. . Buyers are still in control but they are generally taking a long time to make decisions and are most nervous about a market decline. Although sales are down, luckily Ridgefield has not experienced a huge erosion in property values mostly due to how desirable people find the town. Great schools, proximity to New York City, many employers and corporations within a manageable drive and overall property values (AND TAXES) that remain extremely attractive compared to Westchester County and lower Fairfield County towns like Darien and New Canaan.

The savvy buyers are taking advantage of current market conditions (lower prices, GREAT SELECTION) to “trade up” to a more expensive house for themselves and their families. They are realize that they might have to “give a little” on the sale side but “make it up in spades” on their purchase. Read this Time Magazine article: Ignore the Headlines.

The question most often heard from buyers is about their new house maintaining value in the short term. My view on this is that you can’t “day trade” houses like you can try to do with stocks. Prices will fluctuate up and down in the short term but history has totally proven that in the medium to long term (say 3-4 years plus), real estate will reliably return above average investment gains. And while your asset appreciates, you can also LIVE IN IT! You can’t live in a stock certificate, can you?