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NEW YORK—The real estate market in the lower Hudson River Valley and greater New York City suburban area continued to be battered by chronic low inventory, rising interest rates and persistent inflation during the third quarter of 2022. However, even given these adverse conditions, resiliency and consistent buyer demand are still evident, especially when compared to the pre-pandemic market of 2019. While total transactions were down from the previous year, median sales prices continue to increase throughout the market, driven in large part by low inventory, OneKey MLS reported.
Realtors and consumers also are likely experiencing a return to a more seasonal market, which disappeared during the latter half of 2020 and the entirety of 2021, according to the 2022 Third Quarter Real Estate Sales Report for Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Sullivan, and Bronx counties authored by OneKey MLS.
In Westchester County, third quarter single-family home sales of 2,006 declined 15.6% compared to the third quarter of 2021. However, when compared to the third quarter of 2019, single-family home sales in Westchester were up 3.4%. Condo sales in Westchester for the third quarter of 2022 decreased by 24.5% and co-op sales were on par with the previous third quarter. The single-family median sale price of $872,000 posted a 2% increase over last year, the condo median sale price of $460,000 was slightly down, and the co-op median sale price of $204,500 was 2.3% higher than the previous year.
In Putnam County, single-family home sales of 326 were down 10.7% compared to the third quarter of 2021, but when compared to 2019, the number of sales were almost identical. The median sales price of $505,000 was 8.6% higher than the third quarter of 2021. Rockland County likewise experienced a drop in transactions, with single-family home sales down 9.2% and condo sales down 15.8%. However, when continuing the comparison to the third quarter of 2019, the 2022 third quarter numbers were slightly ahead. The single-family median sales price of $660,000 for the third quarter of 2022 in Rockland County was 14.2% higher than 2021.
In Orange County the third quarter single-family home sales total of 1,019 was down 14% over the 2021 third quarter, and the condo sales number of 138 was off an even steeper 23.3%. The single-family home median sales price was up 9.1% at $420,000 and the median condo sales price of $270,950 for the third quarter was a 13.4% increase over the 2021 third quarter. In Sullivan County the single-family sales number of 300 transactions was just slightly higher than the 298 total of the previous year and the median sales price was up more than 10% when compared to the third quarter of 2021.
Shifting closer to the city, the Bronx market continued to show signs of strength, in the third quarter of 2022, with single-family home sales ahead 9.2% over the third quarter of 2021. The median sales price of $630,000 was 6.8% ahead of last year. However, condo sales lagged from the previous third quarter.
As we have stated in previous sales reports for 2022, there will continue to be challenges in comparing sales numbers to the pandemic year of 2020, when the market came to a grinding halt in the second quarter, and the post-pandemic market of 2021, when pent up demand drastically sped up typical buying cycles.
Given the grim drumbeat of negative economic headlines and the ongoing debate of will there or won’t there be a recession, it’s obvious that the market will not be immune to such significant headwinds. However, the third quarter sales numbers do not necessarily support the doom and gloom forecasts that many prognosticators like to make, especially when making comparisons to the pre-pandemic market of 2019. Also, the strong labor market seems to be playing a role in counterbalancing some of the adverse economic factors. As was the case at the end of the second quarter, the wild card in this analysis is a potential recession in 2023, and the length and depth of one should it occur. Until then, the numbers support a conclusion of a resilient real estate market that is hampered by low inventory, but still supported by strong buyer demand.
Data provided by OneKey MLS, one of the largest Realtor-subscriber-based MLS’s in the country, dedicated to servicing more than 46,000 real estate professionals that serve Manhattan, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Sullivan, Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. OneKey MLS was formed in 2018, following the merger of the Hudson Gateway Multiple Listing Service and the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island. For more information on OneKey MLS visit onekeymlsny.com.
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