Home prices set new records as inventory falls across Long Island

Long Island homes sold at record-setting prices last quarter as areas of the tri-state saw increased attention from New Yorkers fleeing the city.

In the Hamptons, the median sales price hit $1,080,000, up 9 percent over the first quarter and 27 percent year over year, according to the latest Elliman report. The median price is the highest recorded in over eight years of tracking by the real estate company. And the average sales price increased 21.1 percent year-over-year to $2,090,000, the highest level since 2015.

In the rest of Nassau and Suffolk counties, median sales price tied the record set in the third quarter of 2019 at $469,000, a five percent increase year over year.

But the increase in price comes at a cost. Sales and inventory across Long Island fell dramatically during the second quarter.

“This is what a housing market looks like when it’s paused,” said Jonathan Miller of Miller Samuel, who authored the report. “The spring market was kicked down the road because of the shutdown.”

In Nassau and Suffolk counties, the number of sales closed dropped 33.8 percent and inventory fell 30.9 percent year over year, setting a new record in over 16 years of tracking. North Fork similarly saw inventory plunge 41.4 percent and number of sales decrease 24.2 percent.

While the Hamptons also saw drops, Miller said its decline was not as intense as neighboring areas.

The number of sales in the Hamptons, for example, only decreased 13 percent year-over-year.

While the decline in sales and inventory was originally attributed to owners seeking refuge from the city, people are now hunkering down in Long Island because of their ability to work from home, according to Miller.

“The tether between work and home just got a lot longer,” Miller said.

Contact Sasha Jones at sasha.jones@therealdeal.com