Prepared by:

Abigail Mago, Licensed Associate Broker

Abigail@fireislandrealestate.com

Island Wide Data

The strong market performance we’ve been experiencing over the last few years has continued through 2018.  In fact, 2018 was a record year for the Fire Island real estate market, both in terms of the average and median sale prices.  The average island wide sale price reached an all-time high of $907,042.  This represents a 14% year over year increase from 2017’s average sale price of $797,947. This is the first time the average sale price has broken the $900,000 mark since I began data collection in 2006. To provide some historical context, the average sale price over the last 13 years has been $776,401, which is 17% lower than 2018’s average.

While the average sale price was a record high, the number of homes sold did decline by 10% from 2017 to 2018.  133 Fire Island homes were sold in 2018, as compared to 147 in 2017.  Even though the volume of sales did decline year over year, 2018’s 133 sales is still 30% higher than the number of homes sold in a typical year, which, over the last 13 years, has averaged 102 sales per year.

The lowest priced Fire Island property sold in 2018 was $100,000, as compared to 2017’s lowest priced sale of $50,000. The most expensive property sold in 2018 traded for $3,800,000, which is 105% higher than the most expensive sale closed in 2017 of $1,850,000, and 45% higher than the 13-year average high price paid of $2,627,154.  While it should be noted that the $3,800,000 sale was of a commercial property, not a residence, the high end of the market was significantly more active in 2018 than it was in 2017, with 15 sales occurring at or above the $1.5 million mark and 7 sales occurring at or above the $2 million mark. In 2017, only 9 homes traded at or above the $1.5 million mark, topping out at a high price of $1,850,000.

The median sale price in 2018 was $765,000, a 2% year over year increase from 2017’s median sale price of $750,000.  Stronger market activity in the higher priced segments is also evident in the fact that the average sale price in 2018 was 16% higher than the median sale price.  In 2017, the average was only 6% higher than the median sale price.  The higher the average sale price relative to the median sale price, the greater the activity at the high end of the market, causing the average to skew upwards.  The graph below compares the average and median sale prices from 2016 – 2018.

To put the 2018 market data into perspective, it is helpful to look at sales figures relative to the entire period of data collection in addition to comparing to the previous year’s performance.

 

TOWN BY TOWN ANALYSIS

In addition to looking at the island’s overall market performance, it is useful to examine the data on a town by town basis.

ATLANTIQUE

Atlantique saw no sales activity in 2018.  A small community, Atlantique usually sees 1 sale per year. The average sale price over the past 12 years in Atlantique is $589,323.

CHERRY GROVE

Cherry Grove saw strong market performance in 2018, with 15 homes trading, as compared to 12 homes in 2017 and a historical average of 13 per year. The average sale price in 2018 was $628,933, which was up 18% from $531,750 in 2017, and up 16% from the 13-year average sale price of $544,342.  The least expensive Cherry Grove property to trade in 2018 was $335,000, up 29% from 2017’s lowest price of $260,000.

CORNEILLE ESTATES

Two homes sold in Corneille Estates in 2018, as was the case in 2017. 2 sales per year is average for the community.  The 2018 average sale price was $1,142,000 which is 36% higher than 2017’s average sale price and 56% higher than the last 13 year’s average sale price of $734,163. 2018’s lowest price Corneille Estates sale of $999,000 was 22% higher than 2017’s lowest price sale of $820,000. The highest price paid for a Corneille Estates home in 2018 was $1,285,000, up 49% from 2017’s high price of $860,000 and up 65% from the 13-year average high price of $778,958.

DAVIS PARK

Sales transaction volume in Davis Park was over 3 times a typical year in 2018 with 16 sales taking place, as compared to the historical average of 5 sales per year.  Sale count was up 78% from 2017, which was also a strong year with 9 homes trading. The average sale price rose by 3% from $569,137 in 2017 to $588,725 in 2018, and was 14% higher than an average year. The highest price paid for a home in Davis Park in 2018 was $1,225,000 which was a 40% increase over the previous year, and 60% higher than the average highest price paid in the last 13 years.

DUNEWOOD

 After no sales activity in Dunewood in 2017, 2018 saw strong market activity with 3 sales.  A small community, Dunewood typically sees only one home sale per year.  The average sale price in 2018 was $1,678,335, which is 95% higher than the 13-year average of $859,438.  The highest price paid for a home in Dunewood in 2018 was $2,917,506, which is 175% higher than the 13-year average high price paid of $1,062,501.

FAIR HARBOR

Fair Harbor had another strong year with 14 sales in both 2018 and 2017, which is 56% higher than the 13-year average of 9 sales per year.  The average sale price was up 16% year over year, to $926,946 in 2018 from $795,709 in 2017.  This is a 37% increase over the historical average sale price of $679,045.  The highest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2018 was $2,000,000, which is 14% higher than the highest price paid in 2017 and 79% higher than the highest price paid in an average year.  The lowest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2018 of $525,000 is 5% lower than the lowest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2017 of $550,000.

FIRE ISLAND PINES

The Pines market remained remarkably steady from 2017 to 2018, with 29 homes trading hands in both years and the average sale price dipping by .3% from $1,011,961 in 2017 to $1,008,792 in 2018.  The average 2018 sale price was .4% shy of the 13-year average sale price of $1,013,188. The highest price paid in the Pines in 2018 was $2,485,018, up 34% from 2017’s high price of $1,850,000 and up 10% from the 13-year average high sale price of $2,262,348.  The lowest price paid in the Pines in 2017 was $412,754, which is 25% lower than the lowest price paid in 2017 of $550,000.

KISMET

Kismet is one of the only Fire Island towns where the market declined from 2017 to 2018, with a 3% year over year decline in average sale price and a 43% decline in the number of sales, from 7 in 2017 to only 4 in 2018, which is 20% less than an average year.  The average sale price decreased from $694,857 in 2017 to $671,250 in 2018. The lowest price paid for a Kismet home was 34% lower in 2018 than in 2017, and 21% lower than in an average year. The highest price paid in Kismet in 2018 was $995,000 which was 12% higher than 2017’s high price paid of $885,000.

LONELYVILLE

Lonelyville saw strong performance in 2018, with 3 homes selling, as compared to an average year which sees just one home sale.  The average sale price was up 57%, as compared to the historical average sale price, as well as year over year, increasing from $751,667 in 2017 to $1,178,333 in 2018.  The lowest price paid in Lonelyville was up 63% from $450,000 in 2017 to $735,000 in 2018.  The highest price paid in Lonelyville was also up, increasing by 36% from $1,100,000 in 2017 to $1,500,000 in 2018, which is 68% higher than the 13-year average high price paid.

OCEAN BAY PARK

Ocean Bay Park saw dramatic price growth in 2018, with the average sale price increasing by 52% from $640,611 in 2017 to $973,745 in 2018. The average sale price in Ocean Bay Park over the last 13 years has been $544,985, which is 79% lower than 2018’s average.  Sale count was up 11% year over year, with 10 homes trading in 2018, as compared to 9 in 2017.  This represents 35% more sales than in an average year, which typically sees 7 sales occurring.  The lowest price paid in Ocean Bay Park in 2018 was $550,000, as compared to $130,000 in 2017 which is a 323% increase year over year and a 106% increase over the 13-year average low price of $266,962.  Fire Island Real Estate brokered the highest price Ocean Bay Park sale in 2018 of $2,000,000, which is the highest price ever paid in Ocean Bay Park, a 67% increase from 2017’s high price paid of $1,200,000, and 104% higher than the 13-year average high price paid of $982,182.  In recent years, Ocean Bay Park has shed its reputation as a haven for share houses and group rentals and continues to transition towards luxury family homes and high-end rentals.

OCEAN BEACH

Coming off of record transaction volume of 39 sales in 2017, not surprisingly the number of Ocean Beach sales declined substantially year over year to 21 sales in 2018.  This 46% decline can be viewed as a regression to the mean, with 21 sales per year being the average over the last 13 years.

While sale count decreased to be in line with a typical year, average sale price was up 14%, from $793,705 in 2017 to $908,516 in 2018, which is 33% higher than the historical average sale price of $681,952.  The highest price paid in Ocean Beach in 2018 was $3,800,000 which is 137% more than 2017’s high price paid of $1,606,000.  This sale was a commercial property, not a residence. The highest price paid for an Ocean Beach residence in 2018 was $1,185,000.  The lowest price paid for an Ocean Beach home in 2018 was $385,000, down 4% from 2017’s low price of $400,000.

ROBBINS REST

No homes changed hands in Robbins Rest in 2018.  Given the small size of the community, an average year sees only 1 home sale.  The historic average sale price in Robbin’s Rest is $677,333.

SALTAIRE

Saltaire had an extremely weak year in 2018.  Traditionally considered one of the most desirable communities on Fire Island, Saltaire usually sees 10 homes trade a year with some of the highest price points island wide.  2018 saw only 2 Saltaire homes trade hands, which represents an 82% year over year decline and an 80% decline from the 13-year average sale count.  The average sale price also declined by 18% from $943,691 in 2017 to $775,250 in 2018.

The lowest price paid for a Saltaire home is 2018 was $645,000, which was 62% higher than the 2017 low price paid of $397,500, and 45% higher than the 13-year average low price.  However, the high price paid was only $905,500, which is down 38% from 2017’s high price of $1,460,000 and down 52% from the 13-year average high price paid of $1,875,042.

SEAVIEW

After a significant sales slump in 2016 and 2017, Seaview sales came back strong in 2018.  Sale count was up 38% from 8 sales in 2017 to 11 sales in 2018, which is 22% greater than the 13-year average sale count of 9 homes.  The average sale price was up 29% from $838,581 in 2017 to $1,081,591 in 2018. While the year over year average price jump was considerable, 2018’s average sale price was just a modest 3% above the 13-year average of $1,045,489.

The lowest price paid in Seaview in 2018 was $715,000, up 8% from 2017’s low price of $660,000, and 26% higher than the historical average price of $566,731.  The highest price paid in Seaview in 2018 was $2,372,500, which is 146% higher than the highest price paid in 2017 of $962,500 and 19% higher than the 13-year average Seaview sale price of $1,998,192.

SUMMER CLUB

Two homes traded in the Summer Club in 2018, as compared to none in 2017.  Two home sales per year is typical for the Summer Club.  2018’s average Summer Club sale price was $1,123,750, which is 56% higher than the historical average sale price of $719,907.  The lowest price paid in the Summer Club was $1,100,000, which is 89% higher than the 13-year average lowest sale price of $582,656.  The highest price paid was $1,147,500, which is 20% higher than the 13-year average high price paid of $957,688.

WATER ISLAND

Only one home sold in Water Island in 2018, for a sale price of $1,500,000. 2017 also saw only one home sale in Water Island, at a price point of $1,200,000, representing a 25% year over year increase and a 26% premium over the 13-year average sales price of $1,194,042.

CONCLUSION

With both the average and median sale prices reaching record levels in 2018, the Fire Island real estate market continued the streak of strong performance that we’ve been experiencing since 2016.  While the number of sales in 2018 did decline by 10% year over year, we are still experiencing annual transaction counts well above average.  The 14% increase in the average sale price coupled with the modest 2% increase in the median sale price indicates that the market’s performance was driven largely by sales at the high end.  This is not surprising, given that the high end of the market was completely dormant in 2017, so that pent up demand ended up transacting in 2018.

Because the Fire Island real estate market does not function like a traditional real estate market with a centralized multiple listing service, reliable market data is not readily available to the public. Our annual market reports are published in an effort to address that.  Both buyers and sellers are served by being fully informed about the market in which they are considering transacting.  Please do not hesitate to contact me at abigail@fireislandrealestate.com if I can provide any further information, or if I can be of help to you in the sale or purchase of your Fire Island home.

METHODOLOGY

Please note that all information herein is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Fire Island Real Estate is not responsible for any errors, omissions, or incorrect information.  The information contained herein is sourced from public real estate transaction records. Sales data reporting has a lag of approximately 90 days.  Due to this lag, there may be some outstanding sales that closed late in 2018 but have not yet been reported and are therefore not reflected in this report. All historic data refers to the period between 2006 and 2018.

By: Abigail Medvin Mago

abigail@fireislandrealestate.com

So far, things have been looking up for the Fire Island real estate market in 2018.  There have been 30 sales transactions recorded island wide, year to date.  Because there is a recording lag of up to 90 days for sale data to come through to public sale record, this data consists mainly of sales that closed during the first quarter of 2018.  At 30 transactions closed year to date, that puts transaction volume on pace for approximately 120 sales this year.  In an average year, Fire Island sees 99 homes sell, indicating that the strong market we've been experiencing over the past few years appears to be continuing into 2018.

The average Fire Island year to date sale price is $925,853, which is up 16% from 2017's average sale price of $797,947.  The median sale price is $804,250, which is up 6% from 2017's median price of $760,000.  The high end of the market has been performing much better in 2018 than it did in 2017.  While the overall market was strong in 2017, the high end of the market was unusually inactive, with no homes trading over the $2 million mark.  2018 is already ahead of last year, with the highest price paid for a home so far coming in at $2,390,000, which is nearly 30% higher than 2017's high price paid of $1,850,000.

Curious as to how the market is performing in your town? See the table below for a town by town breakdown of the year to date 2018 average sale price as compared to 2017.

Prepared By: Abigail Medvin Mago, Licensed Associate Broker

Overall the Fire Island real estate market saw another strong year in 2017.  A typical year sees 99 transactions per year[1], but in 2017, 137 Fire Island homes were sold.  While that does represent a 13% year over year decline from 2016’s very brisk volume of 157 sales, when put into historical context, 2017 transaction volume was 38% greater than an average year.   Additionally, we may see a few more 2017 sales come through recording, which should bring the year over year sales volume numbers closer to parity.

The average sale price stayed essentially flat year over year, from $804,581 in 2016 to $804,024 in 2017.  To put the average sale price in historical context, the 2017 island-wide average sale price of $804,029 is 5% above the 12-year average of $763,755.  (I began collecting data in 2006, so all historic averages refer to 2006 through 2017.)

 

The highest price paid for a home on the island in 2017 was $1,850,000, which is nearly 50% lower than the highest price paid for a Fire Island home in 2016, which was $3,600,000.  It is also 26% lower than the 12-year average of the highest price paid in a given year since 2006, which is $2,516,917.   The only year since I began collecting data where the highest price paid for a home in that year was lower than 2017 was in 2009, where the highest price paid topped out at $1,200,000.  The lack of activity at the very top end of the market is somewhat unusual, however does not seem to be symptomatic of performance in the rest of the market.

Because of the relatively small size of the Fire Island market, when we see transactions in the 2 and 3 million dollar range, it can skew the overall averages upward fairly significantly, so the fact that the average sale price remained essentially the same year over year even though there were no high value sales (defined as $2 million and over) shows that price performance in 2017 was actually stronger than the average sale price would indicate.  In fact, when we look at the median sale prices, 2017 outperformed 2016 by 8%, with a median sale price of $760,000 as compared to 2016’s median price of $700,000.  Although the very high-end of the market saw little activity, this indicates strong market performance in the middle and lower segments of the market. Because the median is not skewed by outliers as the average is, it can be a more accurate measure of market performance.  The 2017 median sale price of $760,000 is (tied with 2007) the highest median sale price seen during the data collection period.  Evidence of this trend is also seen in the fact that several communities saw a drastic rise in price point for the lowest price sale of the year, indicating that inventory at the lowest segment of the market has largely cleared.

To put the 2017 market data into perspective, it is helpful to look at sales figures relative to the entire period of data collection in addition to comparing to the previous year’s performance.

Town by Town Analysis

In addition to looking at the island’s overall market performance, it is useful to examine the data on a town by town basis.

ATLANTIQUE

Atlantique saw no sales activity in 2017.  A small community, Atlantique usually sees 1 sale per year.  The average sale price over the past 12 years in Atlantique is $589,323.

CHERRY GROVE

Cherry Grove had another solid year in 2017, with 10 homes trading, as compared to 11 homes in 2016 and a historical average of 8 per year.  The average sale price in 2017 was $545,600, which was up 6% from $516,550 in 2016, and up 1% from the 12-year average sale price of $538,447.  The least expensive Cherry Grove property to trade in 2017 was $260,000, up 49% from 2016’s lowest price of $175,000.

CORNEILLE ESTATES

Two homes sold in Corneille Estates in 2017, as compared to 4 homes in 2016.  Even though the number of sales declined by 50% year over year, 2 sales per year is average for the community.  The 2017 average sale price was $840,000 which is 27% higher than 2016’s average sale price and 21% higher than the last 12 year’s average sale price of $697,087.  2017’s lowest price Corneille Estates sale of $820,000 was more than double 2016’s lowest price sale of $400,000.  The highest price paid for a Corneille Estates home in 2017 was $860,000, up 13% from 2016’s high price of $762,500 and up 17% from the 12-year average high price of $732,955.

DAVIS PARK

Sales transaction volume in Davis Park doubled in 2017, going from four sales in 2016 to 8 sales in 2017.  The average sale price rose by 10% from $521,250 in 2016 to $571,529 in 2017, and was 12% higher than an average year.  The highest price paid for a home in Davis Park in 2017 was $875,000 which was a 37% increase over the previous year, and 21% higher than the average highest price paid in the last 12 years.

DUNEWOOD

 No homes sold in Dunewood in 2017.  A small community, Dunewood typically sees only one home sale per year.  In the last 12 years, the average sale price in Dunewood was $742,452.

FAIR HARBOR

Fair Harbor had a very strong year with 13 sales in 2017, representing a 30% year over year increase in sales volume and a 63% increase over the 12-year average of 8 sales per year.  The average sale price was also up 19% year over year, to $801,148 in 2017 from $671,148 in 2016.  This is a 22% increase over the historical average sale price of $658,840.  The highest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2017 was $1,760,000, which is 83% higher than the highest price paid in 2016 and 69% higher than the highest price paid in an average year.  The lowest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2017 of $550,000 is 80% higher than the lowest price paid in Fair Harbor in 2016 of $304,979.

FIRE ISLAND PINES

The Pines market remained remarkably steady from 2016 to 2017, with 27 homes trading hands in both years and the average sale price remaining with a quarter percentage point, year over year.  The average 2017 sale price was $1,001,569, which is less than 1% shy of the 12-year average sale price of $1,008,788.  Like the similarly priced communities of Seaview and Saltaire, the Pines saw a similar trend in the highest price paid for the year being much less than the 12-year historical average.  The highest price paid in the Pines in 2017 was $1,850,000, down 40% from 2016’s high price of $3,070,000 and off 18% from the 12-year average sale price of $2,242,458.  The lowest price paid in the Pines in 2017 was $550,000, which is 57% higher than the lowest price paid in 2016 of $350,000.

Interestingly, we see the exact same data pattern as Seaview and Saltaire, when looking at the median price points.  Even though the average sale prices saw almost no change, the median sale price increased by 9.5% from $840,000 in 2016 to $920,000 in 2017.  This in combination with the lack of high end sales, indicate the market was driven by strength in the middle segment, whereas 2016’s market performance was buoyed by a handful of high priced sales.

KISMET

 Kismet saw solid price growth, with an 8% year over year increase in average sale price.  While the number of sales declined from 7 in 2016 to 6 sales in 2017, that still represents a sales volume of 20% greater than an average year.  The average sale price increased from $636,429 in 2016 to $685,667 in 2017.  The lowest price paid for a Kismet home was 9% lower in 2017 than in 2016, but was 19% higher than in an average year.  The highest price paid in Kismet in 2017 was $885,000 which was 4% higher than 2016’s high price paid of $850,000.

OCEAN BAY PARK

 2017 saw 9 home sales in Ocean Bay Park at an average sale price of $640,611.  In comparison, 2016 saw 16 Ocean Bay Park home sales at an average sale price of $780,688.  However, comparing these measures year over year is misleading, due to the fact that several condemnation sales of oceanfront homes took place in 2016 in order to facilitate the dune restoration project that will be completed this year.  Owners of the condemned oceanfront properties were paid market value for their homes by the county, resulting in an upward skewing of the 2016 sales data since the proportion of oceanfront homes (which naturally command a large premium relative to inland properties) sold in 2016 was so much greater than in a typical year.  2017’s average sale price was down 18% from 2016’s average sale price of $780,688, but when the oceanfront condemnation sales are excluded, 2016’s average sale price was actually only $618,000, indicating that the year over year average sale price actually increased by 4%, and was 26% higher than the 12-year average Ocean Bay Park sale price of $509,255.  Ocean Bay Park continues to gain desirability as former share houses are being bought up and converted into luxury family homes or high-end rentals.

OCEAN BEACH

The lion’s share of the island’s 137 sales took place in Ocean Beach, with 38 homes changing hands in 2017.  That represents a 16% decline from Ocean Beach transaction volume in 2016 which was extraordinarily high at 45 homes.  Since 2006, the village has seen 21 homes sell per year on average, so even though year over year volume was down, 2017 saw 81% more Ocean Beach home sales than a typical year.

As one might expect in light of the continued strong pace of sales, Ocean Beach sale prices were also up in 2017.  The average Ocean Beach sale price in 2017 was $794,724 which is a 23% increase over the 2016 average sale price of $648,477 and 19% above the 12-year average Ocean Beach sale price, which is $665,913.   The highest price paid for a home in Ocean Beach in 2017 was $1,606,000, which is 2% less than 2016’s high price of $1,646,250.  The lowest price paid for an Ocean Beach home in 2017 was $400,000, up 92% from 2016’s low price of $208,133.

ROBBINS REST

Three homes sold in Robbins Rest in 2017, as compared to 2 sales in 2016. A typical year sees only one home trade in this small community, so 3 sales is a high volume year.  While the volume of transactions increased, the average sale price was down considerably from $1,150,000 in 2016 to only $500,000 in 2017.  This represents a 57% year over year decline in average sale price and a 34% decline from the 12-year average sale price of $756,854, however two of the three sales were of vacant parcels, thus explaining the lower price point.

SALTAIRE

Saltaire had a surprisingly lackluster year in 2017.  Sales volume was down 40% from 15 sales in 2016 to only 9 sales in 2017.  While the year over year transaction volume decline was steep, when compared to the 12-year average volume of 10 sales per year, 9 sales per year is not atypical.  The average sale price was also down year over year, from $1,326,582 in 2016 to $1,027,011, however the 2017 average sale price was still 8% higher than the 12-year average.  Interestingly, the highest price paid in Saltaire in 2017 was $1,460,000, nearly 60% less than 2016’s highest price paid of $3,600,0000.  In a typical year, the highest price paid in Saltaire is $1,963,182, which is 26% higher than 2017’s highest sale.  The lack of high end sales mimics the data observed in Seaview, and the Fire Island Pines which typically trade at a similar price point to Saltaire.  When looking at the median price point data, we still see a price decline, but a much smaller one.  The median sale price in Saltaire in 2016 was $1,075,000, as compared to $1,020,000 in 2017, a decline of just half a percent.

SEAVIEW

Seaview is traditionally considered one of the most desirable communities on Fire Island, but the past two years have seen a significant slump in sales.  Only 8 Seaview homes traded hands in 2017, as compared to 12 in 2016 which represents a 33% decline in year over year sales transaction volume.  However, when comparing to the past 12-year average of 9 sales per year, 8 Seaview home sales in a given year is not atypical.

The average sale price was nearly flat, year over year.  The average 2017 sale price was $838,581, as compared to 2016’s average of $839,250, both off 19% from Seaview’s 12-year average sale price of $1,032,550.  The most expensive home sale in Seaview in 2017 was $962,500 which is less than half the price of the most expensive home sold in an average year, which is typically close to the $2 million mark.  It is rare to see a year where nothing in Seaview trades above the $2 million mark, let alone the $1 million mark.  The lowest price Seaview home sold in 2017 was $660,00, which was 26% higher than 2016’s lowest price Seaview sale of $525,000.  While the average sale price declined by less than 1%, the median sale price increased by 15% from $750,000 in 2016 to $863,000 in 2017.

It’s unclear why the Seaview market has been underperforming for the past couple of years.  Given the small data set, I am inclined to think the lackluster sales figures don’t truly reflect a real drop in value but are driven by the fact that none of Seaview’s high value homes happened to have traded in the past 2 years.  Due to its convenient location between Ocean Beach and Ocean Bay Park and considerable community amenities, Seaview remains in high demand among buyers, but quality inventory has been limited.  We’ll see if 2018 sees a return to typical price levels in the community.

SUMMER CLUB

No homes traded in the Summer Club in 2017.  Given that the community is comprised of only 40 homes, that’s not terribly surprising, but a typical year does see 1.5 homes in the community trade.  The 12-year average sale price in the Summer Club is $719,907.  With several high-end homes currently for sale in the Summer Club, I believe 2018 will see at least a few trades in the Summer Club, likely at significantly higher price levels.

WATER ISLAND

Only one home sold in Water Island in 2017, for a sale price of $1,200,000.  2016 also saw only one home sale in Water Island, but at a higher price point of $1,55,000.  While the year over year average price was 23% lower in 2017, it’s still 3% above the 12-year average sale price of $1,160,046.

 

Conclusion

The strong Fire Island real estate market performance observed in 2016 continued into 2017, however was driven mainly by the middle and lower segments of the market.  The top segment of the market (defined as $2 million and up) was completely dormant in 2017, while a typical year sees at least a handful of transactions upwards of the $2 and $3 million dollar price points.  Despite this lack of activity at the high end, median sale prices were up and average sale prices remained stable, year over year.  Cherry Grove, Corneille Estates, Fair Harbor, Fire Island Pines, Ocean Beach, and Seaview all saw drastic increases in their lowest price sale, year over year, indicating that inventory at the bottom end of the market has cleared.

Because the Fire Island real estate market does not function like a traditional real estate market with a centralized multiple listing service, reliable market data is not readily available to the public. Our annual market reports are published in an effort to address that.  Both buyers and sellers are served by being fully informed about the market in which they are considering transacting.  Please do not hesitate to contact me at abigail@fireislandrealestate.com if I can provide any further information, or if I can be of help to you in the sale or purchase of your Fire Island home.

Methodology

Please note that all information herein is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.  The information is sourced from public real estate transaction records.  Sales data reporting has a lag of approximately 90 days.  Due to this lag, there may be some outstanding sales that closed late in 2017 but have not yet been reported and are therefore not reflected in this report. 

 

[1] From 2006 – 2017, the average number of transactions per year has been 99.