Greenwich CT, Residential Real Estate Blog and Analysis: March 13th

Greenwich, CT Residential Real Estate Blog and Analysis:   March 13th A weekly analysis brought to you by Greenwich Real Estate Guy. www.greenwichrealestateguy.com

I apologize for the delay in sending this out.  I have been invited to two charity events over the last two weeks.  They both are very impressive foundations.  You can learn more about both foundations by clicking the links: The Ty Louis Campbell Foundation is a nonprofit organization, certified 501(c)(3), that funds innovative research and clinical trials specifically geared toward the treatment of the deadliest childhood cancers (including brain and spinal cord tumors). Our organization seeks less toxic, more effective treatments that are specifically designed for children fighting cancer. Our ultimate mission is to help fund the intelligence and technology that will uncover new ways to cure children with cancer. B*CURED was founded in 2008 by Debbie Needle and Melissa Salamé after each lost a parent to brain cancer. The organization's primary goal is to help find a cure for brain cancer through research grants. To date, B*CURED has awarded ten grants to investigators searching for a cure for brain cancer at nationally ranked universities and hospitals. B*CURED is an all-volunteer organization. All money raised goes directly to brain cancer research. The above featured property is 34 Bruce Park Avenue #A.  This is a two unit complex unlike anything I have seen.  The second unit is in contract where I am representing the buyers.  It is a rare opportunity to own something newly constructed so close to town and the train.  However, the details and amenities are what sets this apart.  There is a modern flair that we do not see too much in Greenwich.  The windows are oversized and let in a ton of light.  Each window has Lutron shades that you can control how much light you want in.  There is a two car garage, with radiant heating driveway.  There is an elevator that goes to all floors including the roof top deck.  The deck is complete with an outdoor fireplace, outdoor kitchen, perfect for entertaining.  It is listed as 3,344 s.f. 3 bedrooms, 3 full baths, another two half baths, 3 fireplaces.  It is listed at $2.75M.  January was very slow as far as sold properties.  You will see as you look at the charts below that February more than out did January.  January was down 52% in volume over last year.  We made up for that in February, as we are now at the same point practically that we had at this point of last year.  This is a great one sheet on January and February Sales.  There are 541 properties for sale in Greenwich currently,up seven from last week.  438 of which are single family homes.  We had 82 properties sell on the MLS, up 18 from last week.  We have 79 properties under contract, down 16 from last week.  This makes sense as most properties close at the end of the year. February is definitely making up for the slower January.  All charts, graphs, and open house lists have been updated.  When looking at 2014 as a whole it was a very surprising year.  We finished 2013 with a flurry of activity and started 2014 with that activity.  The year as a whole however ended up 6.2% down in total transactions.  However, the average sales price was up 19.8%.  The median sale price was up 11.1%.  Even the average price per square foot was up 9.9%. When looking at all of this data we get a clearer picture.  Ultimately the high end market was extraordinary.  The over $10M market which has been hit so hard lately was up 87% over last year.  Obviously, this causes the median and average prices to jump.  We had an incredible year, especially in the high end.  When we hear that the average price per home is up, the median price is up, the amount per s.f. is up, it would be easy to say we had the year of all years.  Conversely, if we said that the amount of transactions is down 6.2% we could say it was a slow year.  As most times, the truth lies in the middle.  In 2013 we saw the activity jump from 2012, but most of that was in the under $2M range and especially under $1m.  This year, the inventory of these markets were lacking all year.  In turn, that really affected the activity, and is where we saw most of the activity in 2013.  The under $1M properties sold dropped 12% from 2013.  The $1M-$2M dropped and even more astounding 21%.  These price points have been the pulse of the market and is the reason that the activity dropped 6%.   In my opinion overall, the market in 2014 was good, and could have been great if we had more inventory, especially in the under $2M market.  Everything points to a robust market in 2015.  As mentioned, the activity for the year was down about 6%.  However, when you look at November and December of this year we are up 7.5% on activity vs. 2013.   I have also included a link to the 4th Quarter Market Report my firm puts out for your review. 4th Quarter Report   I have invested in my own MLS Search for my readers.  This will give access to a lot of the listing information I have.  Also, if I have already set you up with your personal portal, you will now be able to search your own searches outside of what I set up for you.  Feel free to test out and search properties.  I feel the best attribute is that you can save your own search and choose to get alerts as new properties come on to the market, properties are sold, or change in price.  All specific to your customized search.  Hence, you will speed up your learning curve, becoming an expert in the specific market you care about.  Please let me know if you would like me to provide customized information or statistics for you based on your criteria.  **The information on the featured property and all statistical information is from the Greenwich MLS. Properties Sold   January was obviously disappointing.  However, for how disappointing January was, February was promising.  We had 52 total properties sell in the month of February.  More than the last four years. New Listings The new listings for February were 95.  This number is slightly less than the last three years.     Year to Date Sold The value in these two charts are comparing the market of what is available vs. what has sold.  Obviously, we are only one month in, so each transaction would have a more profound impact on each graph.   Year to Date Available    In an effort to define the different markets as a good time to buy or sale I believe one needs to look at the months on average it would take to sell through the inventory we have.  This one below is the amount of months on average to sell through our current inventory based on 2014 ytd sold numbers by price range. Price Range 1/31/14 2/28/14 3/28/14 4/25/14 5/16/14 7/31/14 12/31/14 0-$500K 10.2 6.0 7.0 6.1 5.5 5.6 3 $500K-$1M 9.7 8.6 9.0 8.7 8.6 5.2 3.7 $1M-$1.5M 5.5 9.5 8.9 10.3 7.8 6.4 4.4 $1.5M-$2M 8 14.5 13.6 18.4 17.8 11 6.7 $2M-$3M 4.7 9.2 11.6 14.3 14.2 11.1 7 $3M-$4M 11 13.1 11.8 14.2 14.5 10.4 9 $4M-$5M 11.9 8.9 13.1 14.4 22.1 17.7 18.4 $5M-$7.5M 20.7 32.0 39.5 59 56.6 32 25.1 $7.5M-$10M n/a n/a 71.5 51 31.5 59.5 21.6 $10M+ 22.4 27.2 42.0 22.7 33.8 29.9 35.2 Price Range 2/28/15 0-$500K 4.5 $500K-$1M 6.3 $1M-$1.5M 4.8 $1.5M-$2M 6.9 $2M-$3M 10.1 $3M-$4M 31 $4M-$5M 54.3 $5M-$7.5M 49.1 $7.5M-$10M 20.4 $10M+ 41.7 This chart above is the months on average based on the amount sold so far this year.  I feel it is a good comparison between 12/31/14 based on last year's numbers vs. currently using this year's activity to date.  As you can see the market needs more inventory in under $3M range and continue to see improvement in the higher price ranges.  Obviously, in times of lower inventory it dramatically changes the numbers.     Open Houses for March 15th    Please Below are the 18 open houses this weekend.   Street Name Area List Price Time Listing Office 30 Almira Drive Greenwich $649.9K 2-4 p.m. Raveis 20 Highland Place Greenwich $799K 2-4 p.m. Anderson 8 Tremont Street Cos Cob $880K 1-3 p.m. Raveis 42 Ridge Street Cos Cob $975K 1-3 p.m. Raveis 265 Pemberwick Road Greenwich $985K 1-3 p.m. Raveis 285 Bruce Park #B Greenwich $1.195M 1-3 p.m. Weichert 41 Leonard Avenue Riverside $1.395M 1-4 p.m. Sotheby's 30 Old Stone Bridge Cos Cob $1.595M 1-4 p.m. BHHS 365 Round Hill Road Greenwich $1.695M 2-4 p.m. Davenport 15 Ferncliff Road Cos Cob $1.695M 1-3 p.m. Coldwell Banker 39 Bowman Drive Greenwich $1.85M 2-4 p.m. Raveis 88 Dingletown Road Greenwich $2.28M 1-4 p.m. William Pitt Sothebys 69 Mallard Drive Greenwich $2.375M 2-4 p.m. Sotheby's 18 Cat Rock Road Cos Cob $2.375M 1-3 p.m. Keller Williams 139 North Street Greenwich $2.695M 1-4 p.m. New England Land 11 Meyer Place Riverside $2.888M 2-4 p.m. Coldwell Banker 50 Lockwood Avenue Old Greenwich $3.495M 1-4 p.m. Raveis 22 Stillman Lane Greenwich $4.995M 1-3 p.m. Coldwell Banker Best,                                                                                                                                                         Jared Randall                                                 Join my Mailing List Houlihan Lawrence Greenwich                     Search Properties www.greenwichrealestateguy.com                Forward to a Friend cell:  203-273-1034                                         View My Website email:  jrandall@houlihanlawrence.com     Like me on Facebook            Mortgage Information There are two individuals I feel most confident about when it comes to home mortgages.  One in Manhattan and one in Greenwich.  They are Jeff Ihrig of First Republic in Manhattan, and in Greenwich I prefer Treena David-Chirico of Wells Fargo NMLSR ID 404288. Jeff can be reached at 646-372-5181.  Treena's phone number is 203-618-3923.  You can go to her website to input your specific information to receive rates.  Her website is www.wfhm.com/treena-david-chirico. **All opinions garnered from the statistics are my own