Westchester Home Sales Hit 40-Year High as Suburbs Still Beckon

(Bloomberg) -- The Covid-era march to New York City’s suburbs is still going strong: Home sales in Westchester County set a 40-year record in the third quarter. 

Completed purchases of houses, co-ops and condos totaled 3,639 in the period, according to a report Thursday by appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate. That’s the most for any quarter in data going back to 1981.

Buyers are still clamoring for space in the suburbs, as offices signal to workers that they don’t need to commute to Manhattan five days a week. That’s freeing up shoppers to cast a wider net, and make bolder bids for a place outside the city, with a backyard and enough room for a home office. 

Single-family homes in Westchester sold for a median of $850,000 -- a record high and up 5.1% from a year earlier, the firms said. Sellers offered no discounts to their asking prices. 

The purchase frenzy sent already low levels of inventory plummeting further. There were 2,776 listings for all types of homes at the end of September, down 22%.  

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