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A Litchfield County real estate surge and its consequences

A Litchfield County real estate surge and its consequences
Sales of homes in Litchfield County, and their prices, surged in 2020 as city residents fled metropolitan areas for lesser populated rural communities.  This farmhouse in Sharon was listed and sold by  Sotheby’s over the summer for more than $1 million. Photo courtesy of WPSIR

The year ended with real estate sales continuing to boom in Litchfield County. 

Real estate agents had their hands full, beginning in spring, with city residents urgently seeking to buy or rent properties up here, hoping to protect themselves and their families from the spread of COVID-19. 

Somehow it all worked out, with sellers saying they were nervous about strangers coming to tour their for-sale properties — and with a notably high number of buyers agreeing to purchase properties that they had never seen in person. 

Market statistics shared by William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty showed that even in November, when it seemed like there was nothing left to sell in the Northwest Corner, sales were up 71% over the previous year (with 171 single-family home sales).

In 2020 overall, sales were up 47% over 2019 in all towns except North Canaan. 

Obeying the laws of supply and demand, the prices of houses also increased, by an estimate 32% over 2019. In a 19 town section of Litchfield County, the sale of houses in the $2 to $4 million price range tripled, with 36 sales in 2020. Sales in the 19 towns in the “over $1 million range” increased by a 174%. In November alone there were 19 sales of “million dollar” homes, triple what was sold in the same month in 2019.

The sudden surge in newcomers of course had an impact on life in the Northwest Corner. 

One change that was commented on by longtime residents: The combination of COVID-19 and the new residents led to a vast increase in the number of people taking daily walks along main roads and back roads. Much to the chagrin of drivers, many of the pedestrians wore dark clothing and often walked close to the center of the road; duos and trios would often spread out across the roadway, walking side by side, even around blind curves. 

A positive of the influx of newcomers was increased income for several local businesses. Some restaurants did very well this year despite COVID-19, with outdoor dining and take-out orders. And area grocery stores reported that they saw a dramatic increase in sales. Although stores became more crowded, on average, it was nice to see the businesses doing well — two stores were even able to invest in new cold cases for meats, vegetables and frozen food. 

For an article on how the real estate surge impacted the region’s schools, see the story on Page A1.

Cynthia Hochswender

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