In today’s Connecticut Post (7/2/08), the headlines blared, “State housing market plunges: Fairfield County single-family home sales decline 44% over the past year as prices drop 10%.”  Our situation in Black Rock is not as dire as the headlines would suggest.  As in the rest of Fairfield County, the number of homes sold in Black Rock has declined, however, the good news is that our median sales figures are higher than last year.  The median price for a single family home in Black Rock was $336,000 in the first half of 2008 compared to $316,000 in the first half of 2007.  This higher median price comes at a cost, however, as fewer homes are selling.   At this time last year 20 single family homes had closed in the first half of 2007, whereas only 9 single family homes closed during the first half of 2008.   The inventory of homes for sale in Black Rock remains low, so prices have not been under as much pressure as elsewhere in Bridgeport or even Fairfield, but it does suggest that Black Rock sellers who want to sell their homes quickly will need to adjust to current market conditions to attract buyers as the number of days on market has increased from 113 to 126.   While not immune to the market turndown, Black Rock has likely been less severely affected by it than the surrounding communities because of its desirability.  Black Rock is considered by many buyers to be very desirable due to its access to Long Island Sound, its proximity to New York City and the upcoming Black Rock train station, as well as the exciting new restaurants in the Arts & Entertainment district and our reputation as a true community of artists, intellectuals, writers, and academics.

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