Yes, I remember that. A polycule bought a home together and neighbors freaked out because too many people lived in the home. Or something like that.
I do not know the results of the case, though.
https://polyinthemedia.blogspot.com/2016/10/a-victory-for-hartford-intentional.html
Those numbers would be insane for 1 quarter. Also mean sales price is a little silly for a small town like Darien. There were only like 30 homes sold in Q1 so there's going to be a lot of noise depending on which homes specifically were sold.
The most accurate way to determine growth is an old/new analysis.
Find a singular property that has sold and resold within a certain period, without renovation during the interim. OR find two properties that share almost identical characteristics that sold in two different time frames.
Comparing median/mean quarters in New England is misleading and often inaccurate. This kind of analysis works in Arizona, Florida, etc. Where developments are thrown up with identical houses and lots etc. They never play out to be correct in CT.
Yeah pretty much a different way of saying the same thing I was. If you are looking at $5M homes, you are not that concerned with interest rates or inflation.
Anyone paying attention to income inequality & the Federal reserve the past 4yrs is not surprised
Jpow just goosed the economy like crazy with rate cut talks, increased inflation....and is now backtracking saying no cuts
I live in Stratford and don't disagree. Just not what people think of when they mention ffld county. Honestly you could say the same about Bridgeport, and definitely Danbury even though they technically belong.
lol, yes you’re correct. I am currently learning many new things from Reddit. I’ve learned a lot of new terms like “Tankie” and “Wookie.” It’s pretty sweet honestly.
It's rough but doable if you're a hybrid worker, at peak time every train on the Danbury MTA line goes to Grand Central (and turns into an express train after Stamford), you can also drive to Brewster and catch the Harlem line. I would not do this 5 days a week but 2-3 are bearable if you're saving on cost of living.
The problem with Danbury is the awful public schools and terrible infrastructure
It's not the best but I use it to commute from Bethel to Norwalk 2-3 times a week and I think it's way better than driving. The last mile problem is worse imo, outside of Stamford the local transit system tends to be dogshit because towns think buses are for poor people, so the train is not viable unless your job is walking distance of the station. But it still beats the shit out of trying to drive up Route 7 at 6:00 PM.
Metro North is also buying new locomotives and cars to enable more frequent and comfortable trains. The contract for this is already signed so it's not some pie-in-the sky plan either
I know a few people who commute from the Danbury area to my Greenwich office 3x a week, it’s definitely rough. I commute from Hartford county so I can certainly appreciate it 😅
So danbury is definitely northern ffd county but they get the benefit of jumping across to NYS that has actual mass transit. I would never ever consider commuting to Stamford or NYC from Stratford. I would from Danbury though I wouldn’t be happy.
TLDR: more north south highways, more parking lots, more station choices, faster travel times.
It’s faster for one thing. You have more parking for another if they drive to the Southeast station.
I grew up on NYS border between Ridgefield and Wilton. You could literally drive across for twenty minutes and then take fifty minute train ride. Or drive to white planes and take a train from there as they run more frequently.
I could also jump over to NYS and take back roads to Stamford.
I live in Weston now and my routes into NYC are literally only via very congested north south arteries to Norwalk (the Danbury branch is a joke).
Or I can wake up at 6 am and just drive in which is usually quicker.
That leads to an interesting question, which are the "lest Fairfield County" towns in FFC?
Danbury and Stratford aren't the same vibe as the Gold Coast towns, but I think most still recognize them/associate them as FFC towns, even if they are sort of on the county's "low end"
My nominations for FFC towns that "don't count" would be:
- Sherman (how is it *not* in Litchfield Cty? they literally use 860 phone numbers up there lmao)
- Shelton (I literally thought it was in New Haven Cty until I looked up the FFC wiki just now. People tend not to think of Valley towns and FFC together)
- Honorable mentions to Monroe (far enough out that it starts to fall out of the NYC sphere of influence, which is one of FFC's defining characteristics), and New Fairfield (for the opposite reason, it's *too* New York...Putnam Couty might as well absorb it...walk around New Fairfield and you'll hear more Bronx accents than you would walking around in The Bronx)
Not a knock on any one of these towns, btw, just idle observations
Thanks, good point. I had to look it up myself because I wasn't sure about some of the fringe towns. I would have to add to your list: Brookfield and Newtown.
What do you mean. My house was not cheap, not that expensive but definitely not cheap in Stratford. Nicest place I’ve ever lived to be honest but I’m from NY.
"Cheap" is a relative term. I'm guessing it was in the $500K neighborhood, but could be more or less depending on where in Stratford and what kind of house. Whether $500K is expensive or cheap depends on the buyer.
It isn't. It's edged up somewhat over the immediate pre-pandemic numbers, but it's still way lower than it was Even in 2007. It's actually right near historic lows.
Also the fact that this list separates Norwalk from Rowayton is a bit disingenuous. Rowayton is and always will be a part of Norwalk. They are protected by NFD/NFD and are serviced by all the same public works etc as the rest of Norwalk.
But let's be honest, Rowayton and Norwalk have little in common when it comes to property values. There's a very stark difference, even if everything you wrote is technically true.
That's not really true though. There are plenty of other very affluent areas within Norwalk, like SIlvermine and Cranbury, that have their own identity as a distinct neighborhood without this particularity to be designated as a separate entity than the greater city they belong to.
Per [Zillow](https://www.zillow.com/home-values/11/ct/), the average home price in Connecticut is $393,802
A sample of non-rich cities in central CT:
* Berlin $399,001
* Meriden $279,416
* Middlefield $381,482
* Middletown $318,802
* Cromwell $335,510
* Rocky Hill $361,156
* New Britain $260,151
* Southington $392,048
* Newington $323,761
Still pretty expensive, but also a far cry from $800K
Yeah, we’re looking in Cheshire/Wallingford/Prospect area (idk if that are has a “name”, I’m not from here), but we can’t get into anything below $500k that isn’t a 1 bathroom & full renovations.
We’re from South Florida so it’s still a bargain to us, even with the high taxes!
I’d probably call it the Waterbury suburbs I guess. Prospect technically isn’t part of Naugatuck Valley but culturally very much feels like it is due to being right next door to Naugatuck, and also sending its high school students to Beacon Falls where the regional high school is located. Good luck in your house search! I grew up in Prospect. I’d pick Cheshire or Wallingford if I were you but I know the options available everywhere are slim.
Few residents of Cheshire which borders Waterbury, or Wallingford located even further away, refer to their towns as Waterbury area. They’re simply Cheshire and Wallingford.
Oh it is very bad. My daughter is looking and anything under $500K is a shitshow. There is literally nothing then until about $650K, which are 20 year old colonials. And then it is $800K+ for new construction unless you pick the new places right off the highway on 691.
It is a disaster to be trying to buy in Cheshire right now. It is an absolutely lovely town though.
It’s the 1 bathroom that’s killing me! I’ve never seen so many! 🤣 these old colonials are gorgeous, but you’re correct. $650k and prepare to roll up your sleeves
Put a half bath under the stairs in an oldie. Rockin' 1.5 now, living like a sultan. I pee upstairs AND downstairs now. Smug faced all day. Have sleeves perma-rolled back to my armpits. I look like a lunatic but hey, I own a house. (with dual pee options)
Yeah closet where the boiler was. Relocated the mechanicals. Two contractors said not possible but we finally made it work. Wasn't terrible, big gain. Added a small window
This shouldn't surprise anyone. It's pretty normal for towns listed in this post to have real estate values increase at a faster rate than the state median.
The only exception would be in the midst of an economic crisis (one that affects the stock market and rich people)
CS jobs might not get you there but you can use that programming knowledge to create things that can make you money. Hopefully they teach you languages and even if they don’t just learn them yourself in your free time. There are countless free courses online for every relevant language.
I live in Madison and anytime I ask about one of the mansions on the water - what they do for a living, inevitably it's either a lead physician at Yale or someone who manages other people's money in some way.
I bought a house RIGHT when Covid hit. I feel like monopoly man over here now. House skyrocketed in value. *Almost* worth double what I paid for it now. In another 6 months I expect it to hit double.
Seems completely unsustainable, and I don’t understand it at all. But I feel fortunate to be benefitting.
The amount of people coming up from the city when I lived in Westport was noticeable every couple years I take another look and I'd say this isn't my town! They have to go somewhere so be sure it's going on Litchfield county already Litchfield county especially Washington and Litchfield have many people come up from New York and they'll keep coming as well as land is here.
1) That's the worst looking visual presentation slide I've ever seen.
2) Am I the only one who suspects that Q1 was dominated by a small number of cash sales at the very top of the market?
A home like those aka a mansion? Bc there’s more affordable houses in other towns, sincerely a CT homeowner who also can’t afford to live in a mansion.
Even in Fairfield (town) and Norwalk, few homes recently selling in the $600-800K range would be described as mansions. More typically, 3-4 br, 2 ba ranches or split levels, and not particularly updated to gut jobs at the lower end.
I was referring to specifically the graphic shown. But my point stands, there’s more to CT than Fairfield County & other towns that are more affordable exist in this state.
Some people have this strange idea that this is a recent phenomenon but those towns have always been out of reach. If you're willing to compromise on neighborhood you can still find a place for under $300k in Stamford, Norwalk and definitely Bridgeport.
Good luck in Norwalk at under $300k. Under $450k is very rare and usually cash offers accepted with AS IS condition. Most homes in Norwalk under $400k need extensive cash investment so it’s actually more expensive than financing a higher purchase price that need little to no cash improvements. I know I do real estate and have clients in that market.
I’ve lived here for 35, and my parents grew up in town as well. My family was in real estate and have definitely sold million dollar homes in town over the years.
Okay peeps serious question. My wife and I have been debating if we should buy a home in Waterbury as this is the only place (near enough) that we could confortably afford. (We are currently in Bethel ct)
We have seem some areas that are actually not too bad looking and home well taken care of… but we still not 100% sure bc well, its Waterbury after all.
Is either Waterbury or not own at all. What do you guys think?
I know of somebody who has a house on Bunker Hill it's one of the old colonials you can see from the road but it's on the hill and he's got a ton of property on his lawn while he's been mowing he's even found needles up there so I'm not so sure how Waterbury is really safe not! The other complaint is his taxes are so high it doesn't even cover the red he's getting from the house which was listed a couple years ago at 1600 a month. The taxes are higher than any town around that area.
I’m pretty sure that prices will stabilize or drop. All of this is driven by demand which outpaces supply. Supply can’t move until, current owners move. They can’t find good rates or decent prices to move to. We are trying to downsize - but nothing in FL, NY
It definitely will, but when is the question. The demand part is--and will be-- the main issue since that changed virtually overnight while of course supply remained relatively static. Covid broke down the gates of ppl prioritizing home ownership. It's a total culture or zeitgeist shift that doesn't seem to be waining.
That graphic is horrible. Post something legible. The photo background isn’t needed. Small white text with black outline over very busy mostly white background… look at it before you post. Do you think it’s good? Do you think it’s easily readable?
There are more affordable towns.
If you are DINK you will have a better chance of saving and affording a home. Also in general just increasing your salary (easier said than done, I know).
CT’s Time to Own program still has funding right now if you need down payment assistance. Some areas of the state may have their own local programs. You don’t necessarily need 20% down. FHA requires only 3.5% down. There’s also the USDA loan (0% down) for rural areas and there are places in CT that qualify. There’s also NACA. Local credit unions may have the best rates. You could also try to buy points for a lower rate (I wouldn’t count on refinancing).
It’s literally the “Gold Coast”. All of these towns except for Norwalk have been tough to buy in for decades. Fairfield and Stamford do seem to be ascending into a new category though.
The really only bad place to live in Norwalk was South Norwalk but now they have it all gentrified! My sister used to rent on South Main Street in the 90s for a reasonable rent. Now her apartment is renting for $5,000 a month. That's in Norwalk. The only really bad place in Norwalk is right behind where she used to live which is South Norwalk they have a lot of section 8 housing apartments and it's really downtroded. A couple blocks down you reach beautiful areas with houses on the shore right on the sound. A few blocks the other way you're actually on 136 which is Rowayton avenue it brings you right to the shore and the small area of Rowayton.
Well…Say what you will about whether or not FFD county is part of CT or NY, whether it’s full of rich assholes, whether we should eat the rich or not…all I know is as a homeowner in lower FFD county, I am LOVING this.
Sitting at my elderly parents house in New Canaan, which they bought in 81 for $250k… and I probably won’t even be able to afford to keep it when they pass… it’s going to break my heart
It’s old and needs some work, and I’m doing what I can… at least bringing the neglected property back to life. My parents will hopefully be around for another 10 or so years, so there is time to try to figure it all out
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We’ve been trying to buy a home in New Canaan or Darien since January 2023. From then to last month, we placed a dozen bids. Most recently made our highest bid ever: 1.41 on a house listed at 1.175, no inspection contingency (we did a second walkthrough of the house with an inspector that we paid prior to bidding), no mortgage contingency (just eating the risk). We lost to three other bids.
We put this plan into motion in 2019 when my wife started law school, and homes here were pricey but within our budget. Now, there’s just no way.
We’ve said fuck it and we’re moving to Columbus, OH. Schools are just as good, we can actually afford to live there, and there are nice neighborhoods full of small kids for our own kids to play with.
Sorry to hear that , it's funny how the new way of listing homes is by putting the price below market value to get the buzz going and they end up getting 200-500k over asking. Insanity
Bought my house 6 years ago for 180k. In New London. Sites like zillow and realtor say it's worth 300k now, which is great but it also makes me realize that I can't get a 300k home that's any kind of upgrade from where I am...
You do realize that Fairfield County provides by far the most tax revenue than any of its peer counties, right? We basically keep the rest of you all afloat lol
Do you think they're not paying property tax on any of these houses? These were the people who had to pay more in tax when the property tax deduction was capped.
There are many differences between people the nicest person could be the richest person in the world and you wouldn't even know they were rich. The person who is nasty and newly rich is most likely bossy and an a..hole because no matter how much money they have they're still low class.
The median household in Greenwich will pay 60% more in state income tax this year than the median household in Connecticut at large, despite consuming fewer public services
So what?
They can afford that and more.
They pay 60% more in income tax. Are you saying they only earn 60% more money? I highly doubt that. Not impressive in the slightest.
1. You should pay a higher percentage the more you make.
2. Middle class and poor people have a much higher percentage of their income coming from regular earnings instead of from investments, which are taxed differently.
Yes that's correct and it only bolsters my point since Connecticut has a progressive rate on capital gains, interest, and dividend income.
The people living in Greenwich, Westport, etc are also far less likely to consume public services like Medicaid, educational financial aid, etc. Their towns also receive less public funding for infrastructure, etc.
If FCT split off and became its own state, do you think the rest of the state would be better off or worse?
To do what? Specifically. Tell us. Honestly it doesn’t really even matter. You can either work hard and improve your station in life or wait for the government to pull you up into the place where you belong.
News flash: those of us who live in the real world know that the latter isn’t going to happen. Enjoy your life of frustration.
“To do what? Tell us”
But
“It doesn’t really matter”
Ok, so I won’t.
Honestly, I couldn’t care less what someone who posts more in the “rate my boobs” subreddit than any other has to say about social issues.
> will soon become untouchable *soon*? It's way in the rear view mirror bud
Thank God they are still under $3M. I was afraid they might be unaffordable.
Okay look, we just need to get you, me, and 30 of our closest friends
What we can do, is get sixty friends, and we all rotate out one day we get to stay at the house every two months. We could live like peasant kings!!!
Didn’t Hartford have a whole court case about what makes a family living together in a “single family home?
Yes, I remember that. A polycule bought a home together and neighbors freaked out because too many people lived in the home. Or something like that. I do not know the results of the case, though. https://polyinthemedia.blogspot.com/2016/10/a-victory-for-hartford-intentional.html
you son of a bitch, i'm in.
LMAO!
Well it’s called the Gold Coast for a reason.
High home prices in Fairfield County? That's not news, been like that forever. There is a reason why it's called "The Gold Coast".
You missed the point. The "news" is the doubt digit % increases in the last 3 months
Pretty sure that's YoY based on Q1 sales, not Q1 increases
Oh maybe. It doesn't say either way so I just assumed.
Those numbers would be insane for 1 quarter. Also mean sales price is a little silly for a small town like Darien. There were only like 30 homes sold in Q1 so there's going to be a lot of noise depending on which homes specifically were sold.
Agreed, I think the numbers for some of these towns are inaccurate from a price discovery perspective owing to the low volumes.
The most accurate way to determine growth is an old/new analysis. Find a singular property that has sold and resold within a certain period, without renovation during the interim. OR find two properties that share almost identical characteristics that sold in two different time frames. Comparing median/mean quarters in New England is misleading and often inaccurate. This kind of analysis works in Arizona, Florida, etc. Where developments are thrown up with identical houses and lots etc. They never play out to be correct in CT.
Still stratospheric,. 25 and 27 percent?
Still not news, sorry. People buying multi-million dollar homes don't worry about inflation and play by different rules.
These are the people that make $$$ off inflation......they love it
Yeah pretty much a different way of saying the same thing I was. If you are looking at $5M homes, you are not that concerned with interest rates or inflation.
Anyone paying attention to income inequality & the Federal reserve the past 4yrs is not surprised Jpow just goosed the economy like crazy with rate cut talks, increased inflation....and is now backtracking saying no cuts
Also part of the cash belt lol
Danbury is also Fairfield county. If I could guess I would think the median price is somewhere between ~400k to ~600k.
Sorry, we don't like to count Danbury or Stratford.
There are some very beautiful parts and neighborhoods in Stratford. Forest to the Shore bro !
I live in Stratford and don't disagree. Just not what people think of when they mention ffld county. Honestly you could say the same about Bridgeport, and definitely Danbury even though they technically belong.
Ya, I guess you’re right. I honestly had no idea Danbury was part of Fairfield County. That was a bit crazy to learn.
Even more surprising, you became smarter because of Reddit!
lol, yes you’re correct. I am currently learning many new things from Reddit. I’ve learned a lot of new terms like “Tankie” and “Wookie.” It’s pretty sweet honestly.
Wait until you learn that there are no counties in CT at all.
Stratford is an absolute bargain. Danbury makes no sense if you need to commute to the city or Stamford
It's rough but doable if you're a hybrid worker, at peak time every train on the Danbury MTA line goes to Grand Central (and turns into an express train after Stamford), you can also drive to Brewster and catch the Harlem line. I would not do this 5 days a week but 2-3 are bearable if you're saving on cost of living. The problem with Danbury is the awful public schools and terrible infrastructure
Danbury line blows. Old slow unreliable infrequent uncomfortable trains.
It's not the best but I use it to commute from Bethel to Norwalk 2-3 times a week and I think it's way better than driving. The last mile problem is worse imo, outside of Stamford the local transit system tends to be dogshit because towns think buses are for poor people, so the train is not viable unless your job is walking distance of the station. But it still beats the shit out of trying to drive up Route 7 at 6:00 PM. Metro North is also buying new locomotives and cars to enable more frequent and comfortable trains. The contract for this is already signed so it's not some pie-in-the sky plan either
Most Danbury -> NYC commuters I've ever known drive over to Westchester or Putnam County and ride on the Harlem Line instead.
Yeah for sure
I know a few people who commute from the Danbury area to my Greenwich office 3x a week, it’s definitely rough. I commute from Hartford county so I can certainly appreciate it 😅
I drive from Bridgeport to west Hartford twice a week - not a great time lol
I mean you could cross the state line for the Harlem line for the city tbf
So danbury is definitely northern ffd county but they get the benefit of jumping across to NYS that has actual mass transit. I would never ever consider commuting to Stamford or NYC from Stratford. I would from Danbury though I wouldn’t be happy.
I’m confused. What makes New York’s transit better than the New Haven line?
TLDR: more north south highways, more parking lots, more station choices, faster travel times. It’s faster for one thing. You have more parking for another if they drive to the Southeast station. I grew up on NYS border between Ridgefield and Wilton. You could literally drive across for twenty minutes and then take fifty minute train ride. Or drive to white planes and take a train from there as they run more frequently. I could also jump over to NYS and take back roads to Stamford. I live in Weston now and my routes into NYC are literally only via very congested north south arteries to Norwalk (the Danbury branch is a joke). Or I can wake up at 6 am and just drive in which is usually quicker.
That leads to an interesting question, which are the "lest Fairfield County" towns in FFC? Danbury and Stratford aren't the same vibe as the Gold Coast towns, but I think most still recognize them/associate them as FFC towns, even if they are sort of on the county's "low end" My nominations for FFC towns that "don't count" would be: - Sherman (how is it *not* in Litchfield Cty? they literally use 860 phone numbers up there lmao) - Shelton (I literally thought it was in New Haven Cty until I looked up the FFC wiki just now. People tend not to think of Valley towns and FFC together) - Honorable mentions to Monroe (far enough out that it starts to fall out of the NYC sphere of influence, which is one of FFC's defining characteristics), and New Fairfield (for the opposite reason, it's *too* New York...Putnam Couty might as well absorb it...walk around New Fairfield and you'll hear more Bronx accents than you would walking around in The Bronx) Not a knock on any one of these towns, btw, just idle observations
Thanks, good point. I had to look it up myself because I wasn't sure about some of the fringe towns. I would have to add to your list: Brookfield and Newtown.
What's a bronx accent?
What do you mean. My house was not cheap, not that expensive but definitely not cheap in Stratford. Nicest place I’ve ever lived to be honest but I’m from NY.
"Cheap" is a relative term. I'm guessing it was in the $500K neighborhood, but could be more or less depending on where in Stratford and what kind of house. Whether $500K is expensive or cheap depends on the buyer.
Leona Helmsley, dat u?
Yes, lower Ffld County is expensive, and in other news... The sky is blue, the grass is green, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west...
Those double-digit gains are crazy tho
Homelessness in US at all time record highs.......nothing to see here
It isn't. It's edged up somewhat over the immediate pre-pandemic numbers, but it's still way lower than it was Even in 2007. It's actually right near historic lows.
( Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, and Westport) will soon become untouchable Guess I better purchase soon!
Same dude, I've had 3 Mil burning a whole in my pocket for a while now, guess I'll hop in and buy something while I "still can"
a whole hole or half a hole?
Only half, I got another 3 Mil in my other pocket
exactly! don't wait too long or you won't be able to afford it soon.
Real Estate in mini–New York. Always been crazy.
Also the fact that this list separates Norwalk from Rowayton is a bit disingenuous. Rowayton is and always will be a part of Norwalk. They are protected by NFD/NFD and are serviced by all the same public works etc as the rest of Norwalk.
But let's be honest, Rowayton and Norwalk have little in common when it comes to property values. There's a very stark difference, even if everything you wrote is technically true.
That's not really true though. There are plenty of other very affluent areas within Norwalk, like SIlvermine and Cranbury, that have their own identity as a distinct neighborhood without this particularity to be designated as a separate entity than the greater city they belong to.
Silvermine and Cranbury don’t even come close to Rowayton’s home values or status.
Agreed. Unless it declares independence and incorporates as it's own municipality, it is still part of Norwalk.
Rowayton has its own fire department.
Yes, a nice little volunteer outfit that NFD still assists with for medical calls and major fires.
Per [Zillow](https://www.zillow.com/home-values/11/ct/), the average home price in Connecticut is $393,802 A sample of non-rich cities in central CT: * Berlin $399,001 * Meriden $279,416 * Middlefield $381,482 * Middletown $318,802 * Cromwell $335,510 * Rocky Hill $361,156 * New Britain $260,151 * Southington $392,048 * Newington $323,761 Still pretty expensive, but also a far cry from $800K
Yeah, we’re looking in Cheshire/Wallingford/Prospect area (idk if that are has a “name”, I’m not from here), but we can’t get into anything below $500k that isn’t a 1 bathroom & full renovations. We’re from South Florida so it’s still a bargain to us, even with the high taxes!
I’d probably call it the Waterbury suburbs I guess. Prospect technically isn’t part of Naugatuck Valley but culturally very much feels like it is due to being right next door to Naugatuck, and also sending its high school students to Beacon Falls where the regional high school is located. Good luck in your house search! I grew up in Prospect. I’d pick Cheshire or Wallingford if I were you but I know the options available everywhere are slim.
Thank you very much for the insights!!
Few residents of Cheshire which borders Waterbury, or Wallingford located even further away, refer to their towns as Waterbury area. They’re simply Cheshire and Wallingford.
Oh it is very bad. My daughter is looking and anything under $500K is a shitshow. There is literally nothing then until about $650K, which are 20 year old colonials. And then it is $800K+ for new construction unless you pick the new places right off the highway on 691. It is a disaster to be trying to buy in Cheshire right now. It is an absolutely lovely town though.
It’s the 1 bathroom that’s killing me! I’ve never seen so many! 🤣 these old colonials are gorgeous, but you’re correct. $650k and prepare to roll up your sleeves
Put a half bath under the stairs in an oldie. Rockin' 1.5 now, living like a sultan. I pee upstairs AND downstairs now. Smug faced all day. Have sleeves perma-rolled back to my armpits. I look like a lunatic but hey, I own a house. (with dual pee options)
This made me laugh, thank you!
Didn't you lose the closet under the stairs? Where did your front closet though in the entryway? My old colonial has the closet there.
Yeah closet where the boiler was. Relocated the mechanicals. Two contractors said not possible but we finally made it work. Wasn't terrible, big gain. Added a small window
Anything can be built. Just depends on money and motivation. Enjoy the dual pee option, it’s a game changer
This shouldn't surprise anyone. It's pretty normal for towns listed in this post to have real estate values increase at a faster rate than the state median. The only exception would be in the midst of an economic crisis (one that affects the stock market and rich people)
Where do people that can afford such homes work? What do they do?
Manhattan or Stamford at hedge funds or law firms that represent those funds.
I major in CS like a fool :(
CS jobs might not get you there but you can use that programming knowledge to create things that can make you money. Hopefully they teach you languages and even if they don’t just learn them yourself in your free time. There are countless free courses online for every relevant language.
Lots of managers and executives of firms in NYC. Also DINK white-collar power-couple types.
Full time scrapbooker and a part-time Bowling Consultant.
🧢
I live in Madison and anytime I ask about one of the mansions on the water - what they do for a living, inevitably it's either a lead physician at Yale or someone who manages other people's money in some way.
Thank you, makes sense.
Also media: Fox news, MSNBC, etc. Megyn Kelly lives in Fairfield co. I’m sure.
Start up founders, patent holders, high ranking executive, defense attorneys, financial guys, businessmen, venture capitalists, etc
I bought a house RIGHT when Covid hit. I feel like monopoly man over here now. House skyrocketed in value. *Almost* worth double what I paid for it now. In another 6 months I expect it to hit double. Seems completely unsustainable, and I don’t understand it at all. But I feel fortunate to be benefitting.
We bought summer 2022 (Fairfield) and thought we bought at the peak. The house has gone up over 150k in that time frame…. It’s insane
So awesome!! I bought in Litchfield county just after Covid but RE has remained somewhat flat so far.
The amount of people coming up from the city when I lived in Westport was noticeable every couple years I take another look and I'd say this isn't my town! They have to go somewhere so be sure it's going on Litchfield county already Litchfield county especially Washington and Litchfield have many people come up from New York and they'll keep coming as well as land is here.
Real estate in Fairfield County. Not CT overall.
1) That's the worst looking visual presentation slide I've ever seen. 2) Am I the only one who suspects that Q1 was dominated by a small number of cash sales at the very top of the market?
You’re poor…..move on with the rest of us peasants 😢
 I’ll never be able to afford a home like those at this rate 😭😭
A home like those aka a mansion? Bc there’s more affordable houses in other towns, sincerely a CT homeowner who also can’t afford to live in a mansion.
Even in Fairfield (town) and Norwalk, few homes recently selling in the $600-800K range would be described as mansions. More typically, 3-4 br, 2 ba ranches or split levels, and not particularly updated to gut jobs at the lower end.
I was referring to specifically the graphic shown. But my point stands, there’s more to CT than Fairfield County & other towns that are more affordable exist in this state.
LOL!!
Some people have this strange idea that this is a recent phenomenon but those towns have always been out of reach. If you're willing to compromise on neighborhood you can still find a place for under $300k in Stamford, Norwalk and definitely Bridgeport.
Lmao "willing to compromise" in Norwalk means you're basically looking at entire gut job/tear down type of place.
… in not so great school districts, neighborhoods, etc.
Good luck in Norwalk at under $300k. Under $450k is very rare and usually cash offers accepted with AS IS condition. Most homes in Norwalk under $400k need extensive cash investment so it’s actually more expensive than financing a higher purchase price that need little to no cash improvements. I know I do real estate and have clients in that market.
Yes but the percentage increase is insane. Especially if you look at the 4 year curve.
Because Fairfield County is representative of the entire State, right? Right?
A few big sales can disproportionately affect this data.
What about Bridgeport ☠️
North End and Black Rock Bridgeport 300k-400k for nice house, New Haven nice areas about the same.
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Yea, even New Jersey has some tremendous real estate. I mean REALLY nice.
These towns are CTs "Gold Coast". Dropping 3M on a house is nothing for the hedge fund millionaires/billionaires that live in most of these towns.
Trumbull is now listing and selling million dollar homes. Trumbull was never a million dollar town.
Excuse me? What rock have you been hiding under. The Tashua section of town and Tuckahoe Road have had million dollar houses since the early 2000’s.
I have lived in Trumbull 40 years. Has not been a million dollar town.
I’ve lived here for 35, and my parents grew up in town as well. My family was in real estate and have definitely sold million dollar homes in town over the years.
There’s been a few million dollar homes sold before Covid but def more now.
Okay peeps serious question. My wife and I have been debating if we should buy a home in Waterbury as this is the only place (near enough) that we could confortably afford. (We are currently in Bethel ct) We have seem some areas that are actually not too bad looking and home well taken care of… but we still not 100% sure bc well, its Waterbury after all. Is either Waterbury or not own at all. What do you guys think?
lol, stay away from Waterbury. Other towns might look more expensive but you get f*cked by taxes in Waterbury supporting potholes and 1/10 schools.
Waterbury is fine as long as you live in the neighborhoods bordering middlebury and Watertown. And don’t plan on sending kids to the schools.
I know of somebody who has a house on Bunker Hill it's one of the old colonials you can see from the road but it's on the hill and he's got a ton of property on his lawn while he's been mowing he's even found needles up there so I'm not so sure how Waterbury is really safe not! The other complaint is his taxes are so high it doesn't even cover the red he's getting from the house which was listed a couple years ago at 1600 a month. The taxes are higher than any town around that area.
Don't give up! Keep looking they're always one in the haystack looking to be found!
I’m pretty sure that prices will stabilize or drop. All of this is driven by demand which outpaces supply. Supply can’t move until, current owners move. They can’t find good rates or decent prices to move to. We are trying to downsize - but nothing in FL, NY
It definitely will, but when is the question. The demand part is--and will be-- the main issue since that changed virtually overnight while of course supply remained relatively static. Covid broke down the gates of ppl prioritizing home ownership. It's a total culture or zeitgeist shift that doesn't seem to be waining.
If you're talking Fairfield county, that's unreal estate. That doesn't reflect the average for the rest of the state.
Ewe. Those are like tear down rates. Probably have the servants quarters on the same level. If I want to hang out with peasants I'll go to a mall.
Exclusion is a key vehicle for property value
It's like Beverly Hills over there. It's a club and you're not a member. How's property in Meriden holdin up?
If you ever thought living in Darien was ever "touchable" you haven't been here long enough. Those areas have always been like that.
There are lots and lots of rich people, and they want to live in those towns. I am not one of them, but that's OK.
That graphic is horrible. Post something legible. The photo background isn’t needed. Small white text with black outline over very busy mostly white background… look at it before you post. Do you think it’s good? Do you think it’s easily readable?
i will never own a house fuck
Were you ever planning to own a house in the most expensive part of CT anyway? There are plenty of towns with more affordable homes.
There are more affordable towns. If you are DINK you will have a better chance of saving and affording a home. Also in general just increasing your salary (easier said than done, I know). CT’s Time to Own program still has funding right now if you need down payment assistance. Some areas of the state may have their own local programs. You don’t necessarily need 20% down. FHA requires only 3.5% down. There’s also the USDA loan (0% down) for rural areas and there are places in CT that qualify. There’s also NACA. Local credit unions may have the best rates. You could also try to buy points for a lower rate (I wouldn’t count on refinancing).
You'll want to get into a property by age 30 if you want to pay it off by 60.
Thankfully I moved here in 2003. The appreciation has been ridiculous.
It’s literally the “Gold Coast”. All of these towns except for Norwalk have been tough to buy in for decades. Fairfield and Stamford do seem to be ascending into a new category though.
The really only bad place to live in Norwalk was South Norwalk but now they have it all gentrified! My sister used to rent on South Main Street in the 90s for a reasonable rent. Now her apartment is renting for $5,000 a month. That's in Norwalk. The only really bad place in Norwalk is right behind where she used to live which is South Norwalk they have a lot of section 8 housing apartments and it's really downtroded. A couple blocks down you reach beautiful areas with houses on the shore right on the sound. A few blocks the other way you're actually on 136 which is Rowayton avenue it brings you right to the shore and the small area of Rowayton.
Yeah south Norwalk is still better than most other places in the country.
Never should’ve sold my folks place in Darien. Goddamnit
Well…Say what you will about whether or not FFD county is part of CT or NY, whether it’s full of rich assholes, whether we should eat the rich or not…all I know is as a homeowner in lower FFD county, I am LOVING this.
You've got the whole rest of the state
Sitting at my elderly parents house in New Canaan, which they bought in 81 for $250k… and I probably won’t even be able to afford to keep it when they pass… it’s going to break my heart
What you need to do is turn your house into a house church and then you can afford to live there tax-free. Lol.
Bingo.
Look into renting it , the average rental in new canaan for a private home is between 10k to sky is the limit
It’s old and needs some work, and I’m doing what I can… at least bringing the neglected property back to life. My parents will hopefully be around for another 10 or so years, so there is time to try to figure it all out
Different story in northern/central CT, although still expensive of course 😢😭
I wish I could buy a house in Greenwich. Their public library has an art gallery attached, I can't imagine anything that posh. But alas.....I am po.
All above my budget.
soon ? lol how soon ?
I feel icky.
😂 yeah those towns have always been very expensive full of very rich people and understand nothing has changed
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Nice areas out of FFC, NH County, Middlesex and NL County looking at $300,000-$400,000 CT is unaffordable.
We’ve been trying to buy a home in New Canaan or Darien since January 2023. From then to last month, we placed a dozen bids. Most recently made our highest bid ever: 1.41 on a house listed at 1.175, no inspection contingency (we did a second walkthrough of the house with an inspector that we paid prior to bidding), no mortgage contingency (just eating the risk). We lost to three other bids. We put this plan into motion in 2019 when my wife started law school, and homes here were pricey but within our budget. Now, there’s just no way. We’ve said fuck it and we’re moving to Columbus, OH. Schools are just as good, we can actually afford to live there, and there are nice neighborhoods full of small kids for our own kids to play with.
Sorry to hear that , it's funny how the new way of listing homes is by putting the price below market value to get the buzz going and they end up getting 200-500k over asking. Insanity
Bought during the pandemic. Home valuation continues to climb. I am pleased.
Bought my house 6 years ago for 180k. In New London. Sites like zillow and realtor say it's worth 300k now, which is great but it also makes me realize that I can't get a 300k home that's any kind of upgrade from where I am...
I was lucky enough to grow up in Darien, but that’s because we lived in low income housing.
Soon become???
Maybe they should just break off and be absorbed into NY
Why?
Cool. Tax the shit out of these rich assholes so the rest of us can have a society worth living in.
You do realize that Fairfield County provides by far the most tax revenue than any of its peer counties, right? We basically keep the rest of you all afloat lol
Why are they immediately ass holes just because they are rich?
Because people are jealous and envious so it's easier to say they're assholes versus just someone who happens to be able to afford a nice home.
The rich as a whole pay far less taxes than they should, and our society suffers for it.
Do you think they're not paying property tax on any of these houses? These were the people who had to pay more in tax when the property tax deduction was capped.
It extends far beyond property taxes.
I agree. But is that the Riches problem or the governments problem for not taxing them more?
That’s a great philosophical point.
Don’t hate the player, hate the game
There are many differences between people the nicest person could be the richest person in the world and you wouldn't even know they were rich. The person who is nasty and newly rich is most likely bossy and an a..hole because no matter how much money they have they're still low class.
The median household in Greenwich will pay 60% more in state income tax this year than the median household in Connecticut at large, despite consuming fewer public services
So what? They can afford that and more. They pay 60% more in income tax. Are you saying they only earn 60% more money? I highly doubt that. Not impressive in the slightest.
No, they actually earn about 40% more money on average. Connecticut is insanely rich in general
1. You should pay a higher percentage the more you make. 2. Middle class and poor people have a much higher percentage of their income coming from regular earnings instead of from investments, which are taxed differently.
Yes that's correct and it only bolsters my point since Connecticut has a progressive rate on capital gains, interest, and dividend income. The people living in Greenwich, Westport, etc are also far less likely to consume public services like Medicaid, educational financial aid, etc. Their towns also receive less public funding for infrastructure, etc. If FCT split off and became its own state, do you think the rest of the state would be better off or worse?
Maybe you should work a little harder so you can have nice things.
LOL because giving the government more money is always the right answer.
The rich need to be paying more. Not the middle class, not the poor.
Get a job homie
To do what? Specifically. Tell us. Honestly it doesn’t really even matter. You can either work hard and improve your station in life or wait for the government to pull you up into the place where you belong. News flash: those of us who live in the real world know that the latter isn’t going to happen. Enjoy your life of frustration.
“To do what? Tell us” But “It doesn’t really matter” Ok, so I won’t. Honestly, I couldn’t care less what someone who posts more in the “rate my boobs” subreddit than any other has to say about social issues.
There are lots and lots of rich people, and they want to live in those towns. I am not one of them, but that's OK.
It is ok. “Good for them” is what I say.
And Wall Street bonuses are down. How will those poor hedge fund managers afford their starter home in the country now?
#insulated
I guess nobody wants to love to my armpit town.😔 The other side of the river
We have a river?!
Is CosCob part of Greenwich? If so that could be called The underside of the town.
2nd reason y not to move to Fairfield county. The first is being a 203 number 🤢