The Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service, Inc. provides a quarterly analysis of the real estate market. Considered a suburb of New York City, Westchester County, NY along with Fairfield County, CT, Northern New Jersey and Long Island are an important part of the New York City real estate market. A Matrix reader suggested I provide a summary each time the report is released by the MLS.
Westchester County is known for its higher end housing stock that serves as one of the primary markets to families that sell in the city and move to the suburbs. The second home market in New York has also benefited from empty-nesters who have sold their properties in Westchester and have moved to the city. Cities like White Plains and New Rochelle (Remember Rob and Laurie Petrrie?) have undergone downtown revitalization.
The number of sales are up, despite the increase in inventory. Prices show more weakness in 1-family and 2-5 family properties compared to the same period last year while co-op and condo prices are up slightly.
Here are excerpts from the report
Westchester’s residential real estate market evidenced strength in the first quarter of 2007 as the number of reported closed transactions increased by nearly 6% from those of a year ago. Realtors participating in the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service reported 1,927 closings in Westchester in the first three months of the year, nearly achieving the first quarter record of 1,998 closings established in 2005. First quarter closings largely reflect sales activity in the late autumn and winter months.
Within that overall increase, however, the performance of individual property types varied widely. While single-family house sales increased by 11% and condominiums by 17%, co- op sales numbered 4.5% fewer than last year, and 2-5 family house sales were down by 17%. Further, in Putnam County, total sales were down by 20% from last year.
On a seasonally adjusted1 basis, because prior quarter sales volumes since 2005 had been trending downwards, the 2007 uptick produced an 18% increase from the prior quarter’s adjusted rate. The actual first quarter sales were equivalent to an annual rate of 10,250 sales in Westchester, which if sustained for the rest of the year would place 2007 on a par with the high-performing 2005 market.
Tags: NAR, National Association of Realtors
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