Greenwich Luxury Home Market Posts Q2 Gains: Houlihan Lawrence

From Thompson- Bender: The luxury market in Westchester County ($2M and higher) improved after posting a 20% decline in Q-1, according to the Houlihan Lawrence Luxury Market Report released today. Year-to-date, luxury sales are down just 7% and Q-2 sales kept pace with the same period last year. Putnam and Dutchess county luxury sales ($1M and higher) are unchanged.Greenwich posted an 18% gain in luxury sales ($3M and higher) in Q-2 and year-to-date sales are in positive territory.

Despite a decline in Westchester’s luxury market, the ultra-luxury segment of the market ($5M+) is performing better than it has in years. Through June 30th, there are a total of 21 closed and pended sales over $5M, compared to 19 sales in 2016 and 18 sales in 2017.

Pended sales will likely close this year, and 2018 is on track to exceed the previous two years. More significant are the number of $10M+ sales this year. Two closed and three are pending - a striking increase from 2016 and 2017, when a single $10M+ sale closed each year.

Greenwich experienced a similar pattern last year. The number of homes sold over $10M in 2017 doubled over the prior year - eight homes sold in 2017 vs. four in 2016. At the close of the second half, seven homes sold over $10M and third quarter activity will determine if 2018 exceeds or falls short of last year’s extraordinary performance.

The ultra-luxury segment momentum is evidence that buyers are resurfacing. Their behavior is marked by a combination of right-brain and left-brain decision-making. A property’s location, lifestyle and quality appeal to their emotions, which is important but often not enough to make an offer. Typically, when the left-side of the brain can rationally identify value and justify the purchase price, a buyer will confidently move forward. Both heart and head have to be in agreement because one without the other creates inertia.

For sellers, there is plenty of competition in the luxury market for buyers’ hearts and minds. Positioning your home to entice a buyer is equally as important as pricing your home realistically. One without the other leads to a listing that can languish on the market.

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