Hamptons Real Estate Article of the Day
Thursday, January 28th, 2010By Oshrat Carmiel and Prashant Gopal
Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) — Home sales in the Hamptons, the New York vacation getaway for dealmaker Stephen Schwarzman and movie star Sarah Jessica Parker, surged 59 percent in the fourth quarter as two years of declining prices lured buyers.
Transactions climbed to 409 from 257 a year earlier, the biggest increase in seven years of recordkeeping, New York-based appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and broker Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate said in a report today. Competition for properties pushed the median price up 4.9 percent to $917,900, the first year-over-year gain since the beginning of 2008.
“This is all very good news, better than expected, but I still think we’re not through this yet,” Miller Samuel President Jonathan Miller said in an interview. “The surge in activity to more normal levels, a large portion of that is a release of pent-up demand.”
The median Hamptons home price dropped 31 percent since 2007 as financial firms recorded $1.74 trillion in global losses and asset writedowns tied to sour U.S. home loans. Wall Street executives drive Hampton’s property sales.
Part-time residents have included Schwarzman, chairman and chief executive officer of Blackstone Group LP, and billionaire Ronald Perelman. Hamptons sales slumped in 2008 and the beginning of 2009 as the financial industry cut 26,300 New York City jobs in 12 months, the state Labor Department said Jan. 21.
New York City’s unemployment rate jumped to 10.6 percent in December, the highest level since 1993.
“We have two macro issues, unemployment and credit, that are not expected to change significantly in 2010 from where we are now,” Miller said. “It’s more the second half of the year that I’m concerned about.”
Price Cuts
Hamptons home sellers cut an average of 14 percent from their asking prices to attract buyers in the fourth quarter, compared with discounts of 16 percent a year earlier, Miller said.
Peter and Annette Smergut found a buyer for their East Hampton ranch-style house after agreeing to sell it for $815,000, a 19 percent discount from their original asking price.
The 1,800 square-foot home includes a pool, pond and private beach access.
The sellers got a deal of their own, purchasing a new place in East Hampton for $715,000, 28 percent less than the asking price 10 months earlier, said Peter Smergut.
“It was a hit for us and a hit for them,” he said.
Two other real estate brokers issued Hamptons sales reports this month. The Corcoran Group, based in Manhattan, said annual home sales tumbled 22 percent in 2009 and the median price dropped 4 percent to $830,000.
Broker Views
Town & Country Real Estate said the median price across 11 towns and villages that comprise the Hamptons fell 2.5 percent to $905,000 in 2009, while the number of properties changing hands climbed 4.9 percent to 1,045.
Each brokerage report draws data from different sources.
“The fourth quarter was the saving grace for all of 2009,” said Judi Desidario, president and chief executive officer of Town and Country Real Estate.
Luxury sales throughout the Hamptons and Long Island’s North Fork climbed to 55 properties, a 53 percent increase in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, according to Miller Samuel and Prudential Douglas Elliman.
The median luxury price dropped 3.4 percent to $4.5 million. Miller defines the luxury market as the top 10 percent of sales, which in the fourth quarter included properties sold for $3 million or more.
High-end sellers cut their price by an average of 17 percent compared with 9 percent a year earlier, Miller said.
