The Summer Doldrums We’ve put June in the rear view mirror, and summer is now full swing.  Traditionally, this would mean a slow-down in the housing market, as the families who needed to acquire a new home before the start of another school year have already done so.  Meanwhile, the bargain hunters would still be staying on the sidelines until the autumn months. For the past few years, we have not seen this behavior as pronounced as we did historically, but it appears we may finally be showing signs of returning to the pre-covid market. You can see the data here. I continue to keep the first page of the report as a monthly reminder of just how different Fairfield County is from the rest of the state.  I always find the Average $/sqft chart to be fascinating: the rest of the state really tracks together as a fairly homogeneous group, and it’s not hyperbole to say that Fairfield County is a market unto itself.  The next time you are reading an article about the housing market which quotes national data, remember just how different individual counties in a single state can be! So… Are we tracking with the rest of the country? You may recall that last month we discussed the sudden shift in our market, with an 11% increase in (purportedly much needed) inventory but a 13% reduction in Pending Sales… The rest of the country has been demonstrating buyer fatigue, was Fairfield County finally showing signs of the same?  The answer, as it often is, is more complicated.  Our pricing chart last month was trending to barely match last year’s maximum Median Sale Price, but a big swing upward has allowed us to set a new record, beating last year’s $841,000 set in June with this year’s $878,000.  The market swung back towards a seller’s market once again, and (as you can see on Page 3) it was driven by a monstrous surge in Sold Condo Pricing. Are we all the way recovered from the May dip? No, but the 13% lower number of Pending Sales (comparing May of 2025 to May of 2024) looks a lot better with June being only 5% behind last year’s number… it suggests that (for the year) we will in fact have more homes sold than in 2024 – and that’s certainly a large step closer to a healthy market.  Year to date, we have sold 3964 properties in Fairfield County, 1.6% ahead of last year’s pace.  A double digit drop in Pending Sales last month brought into question whether 2025 would actually see an annual increase, but more than halving that deficit this month makes me more confident 2025 will see us rebounding (finally!). Let’s Talk Strategy The market is cleaving in two.  We see the 3rd straight month of rock-bottom Days on Market for Single Family Homes (On Page 2 – 22 days!)… but we know last month saw more inventory with fewer Pendings… this means that most homes are taking longer to sell (otherwise the increased inventory and the Pending Sales would track with each other), but some homes are selling so fast as to balance out that trend.  If you are buying, identifying the compromise that you are willing to accept in a home is critical: the market is overall acting very picky, so you could be the ONLY buyer for the right property.  If you are a seller, right-pricing is the difference between selling quickly and weeks / months of anxiety… make sure you are working with a professional agent who knows your market! As always, I’m looking forward to connecting.