From left: Corcoran’s Rick Hoffman and appraiser Jonathan Miller While sales activity in the East End residential market in the fourth quarter of 2010 increased, prices remained flat and inventory lagged, according to the latest report released today by the Corcoran Group. The number of sales jumped 52 percent, to 2,266 units, while sales volume climbed 53 percent, to $3.1 billion; average prices, however, rose just 1 percent, to $1.3 million, and median prices increased 6 percent to $721,000. “I think that it reflects a great increase in activity in number of home sales and the dollar value of the homes sold,” said Rick Hoffman, Corcoran’s senior regional vice president of the East End. “Houses that are selling are those that are well-priced and those that people have made reductions on.” [more]

North Fork

Home sales declined 3.95 percent in the third quarter on the North Fork of Long Island to 73, compared to the same time period a year earlier, according to Town & Country Real Estate’s quarterly market report for the region, which analyzes all sales in the area. The total sales volume also declined year-over-year, dropping to $44.8 million, marking a 7.31 percent fall. The biggest drop in sales were seen in the higher ends of the market. No sales over $3.5 million were recorded during the quarter, compared to one logged during third-quarter 2009, while the $1 million to $1.99 million range saw four sales, a 50 percent drop. The data reflects a “bobbing along the bottom,” according to Town & Country CEO Judi Desiderio, who said that the market saw its lowest point in the second quarter of 2009. TRD

NF Q3 2010 Report&Chart

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Martha’s Vineyard

From the May issue: From the splashy beaches of the Hamptons to the rolling hills of the Berkshires, the vacation home markets popular with New Yorkers have been hit hard by the downturn.

But as the 2010 summer season gears up, reports indicate that things are turning around as the economy stabilizes and the threat of rising interest rates brings more buyers out of the woodwork.

This month, The Real Deal examined eight vacation home markets around the region. Of those, the South Fork of Long Island and Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., show the sharpest recent rebounds in sales.

Rental figures are harder to come by, but anecdotally brokers across the eight markets said early leasing is up this year, while prices in most places are still below peak. This means last year’s rock-bottom deals will be harder to come by in low-inventory places like Fire Island, which brokers said they expect to be fully booked. However, in other areas, like the Berkshires, there are more rentals available as for-sale listings languish on the market.

In general, the tea leaves indicate that this summer might be the last to make that unbelievable deal. Below is a rundown of the region. [more]

Plum Island, an 840-acre island off Long Island’s North Shore that since 1954 has housed a federal biosafety research lab, could soon go on the market, and local officials and real estate agents are mulling what could be done with it. The historic island, which was an antisubmarine base before being used for the study of foot-and-mouth disease and other contagious animal diseases, likely needs a multimillion-dollar cleanup. Last month, the General Services Administration released an environmental impact statement for the site. Still, for a developer willing to take it on, the waterfront property could be a unique opportunity. Aside from private residential development, ideas that have surfaced range from a casino to a park or wilderness preserve. [NYT]

While the Hamptons has been abuzz with rumored residential real estate deals, North Fork brokers say their neck of the woods is home to the biggest steals on the East End. While the average price of a Hamptons home is around $1.59 million, according to appraisal firm Miller Samuel, the North Fork has a far-lower going rate — around $590,000. It’s figures like those and the promise of peace and quiet that brokers say is helping draw buyers away from the pricier, more glam Hamptons. “There’s not as much traffic and hubbub as in the Hamptons,” Karla Dennehy, a broker with Prudential Douglas Elliman, said. “It’s very Zen.”

Some renters have decided now is the time to buy because prices and
interest rates are down, but New York City real estate is still out of
reach, and the renters are instead shopping for second homes in the
country. Real estate agents throughout the Hudson Valley and in other
second-home markets, including the North Fork of Long Island and the
Jersey Shore, say that sales have picked up recently with potential
buyers from the city. One woman looking to buy an apartment in the city
found that she could only afford studios, so she decided to stay in her
Park Slope rental and instead buy a three-story home for less than
$300,000 upstate. Brokers estimate that prices in the Hudson Valley are
down about 10 to 15 percent from last year, and that most buyers are
looking in the $250,000 to $450,0000 range. [more]