A year in review and 2024 prediction
Happy New Year! As always, a look back at last year's real estate market will give us a sense of where we were and where we are heading in 2024.
Rising Interest Rate, Housing Cost, High Demand, Low Inventory - these are the few words that summed up 2023 real estate in Fairfield County.
To curb inflation, the Fed has been raising interest rates consistently since March 2022. It went up to as high as above 8%. Currently, the rate is about 6.5%. Interest rates fluctuate, but over the past three decades they have hovered in the 5-10% range.
Interest rate has the biggest impact on starter homes. Due to the lack of inventory in Fairfield County, many buyers are willing to drop the mortgage (or even inspection) contingency to win the bidding war.
Most homeowners are hesitant to put their house on the market even though they understand it is the best time to sell. Granted, it is hard to give up a mortgage of less than 3%, but the main reason is that they have no place to go unless they move out of the area.
A glance of Greenwich sales 2022 vs. 2023:
Single Family sold: 637 527 - 17 %
Median sales price: $2,450,000 $2,500,000 + 2 %
Condo/co-op sold: 215 179 - 16%
Median sales price: $850,000 $875,000 + 6%
Year End Inventory: 2022 2023 (Active) 2023
(Pending)Single Family 133 93 - 30 % 51
Condo/Co-op 29 17 - 40 % 25
Looking ahead, the Fed will most likely lower the interest rate since inflation seems to be under control. However, I do not believe the rate will be near 4% anytime soon. Once homeowners decide to take advantage of the lower rate to trade up or downsize, we will see an acceleration in market movement. Hopefully we will see a more balanced market with supply and demand compared to 2023.