Fairfield County topped the list for highest median single-family and condo prices in Connecticut for 2005, according to data compiled by Boston-based The Warren Group, providers of real estate and financial data throughout New England. Westport came in fourth highest.
The single-family median home price in Fairfield County was $520,000 and the median condo price was $292,000.
Fairfield County communities snapped up the highest median prices in the state.
Greenwich had the most expensive median price for single-family homes at $1.6 million. New Canaan was second at $1.5 million. Darien was third with $1.19 million and Westport was fourth at $1.15 million.
Redding had the highest median price for condos at $695,000, Darien was second at $662,500, New Canaan was third at $635,000 and Greenwich was fourth at $629,000.
The median price is the price that is midway between the least expensive and most expensive home sold in an area during a given period of time. During that time, half the buyers bought homes that cost more than the median price and half bought homes for less than the median price.
“While there was some price variation from county to county, Fairfield County clearly stood out from the pack with median prices that more than doubled some of the other counties’ median prices,” said Timothy Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group. The company publishes The Commercial Record newspaper.
“Fairfield, with its concentration of high-net-worth residents and multimillion-dollar homes, must be judged on a different set of standards than the other Connecticut counties.”
The survey showed that single-family home and condominium median sale prices in Connecticut surged by more than 10 percent in 2005, while the actual number of single-family home sales tumbled and condo sales saw a minimal increase.
The median price for a single-family home in Connecticut for 2005 was $273,000, representing a 10.53 percent increase from the previous year. However the number of homes sold in the state in 2005 actually declined 4.46 percent to 43,418 from the 45,445 homes sold in 2004.
The median condo price also experienced a healthy increase in 2005, going from $160,000 in 2004 to $185,000, representing a 15.63 percent increase. The total number of condo sales also increased in 2005 from 16,291 to 17,115, representing a 5.06 percent increase.
Of the eight Connecticut counties, New London had the largest percentage increase in single-family median home price at 15.24 percent. Conversely, New London also had the sharpest decline in home sales at 10.49 percent.
The results indicate a lack of available homes for sale, according to The Warren Group. The median price for a home in New London County was $242,000.
Changes in median price measure changes in market activity. When there are more buyers buying less expensive homes than there are buyers buying more expensive homes, the median price falls.
Conversely, when there are more buyers buying more expensive homes than there are buyers buying less expensive homes, the median price rises.
