Hamptons, North Fork home markets perk up in July

Uptick in listings on the North Fork powered contract activity

Miller Samuel’s Jonathan Miller (Getty, Miller Samuel Inc.)
Miller Samuel’s Jonathan Miller (Getty, Miller Samuel Inc.)

The residential market on Long Island’s East End is getting back in the groove.

New signed contracts increased in July for the second time in three months in the North Fork, while activity in the Hamptons nearly caught up to last year’s levels, according to Miller Samuel’s monthly report for Douglas Elliman. 

“The market is coming up for air,” report author Jonathan Miller said. 

While new listings in the Hamptons remained stagnant, a surge of properties hitting the market  in the North Fork last month powered contract activity. New signed contracts in the North Fork were up 15 percent in July 2022, from 27 to 31. For the first time in three months, new listings rose in the North Fork, increasing by 24 percent year-over-year from 38 to 47. 

“The North Fork is [performing] beyond the levels of the housing boom last year,” Miller said.

The North Fork’s uptick in listings is likely due to its lower price point compared to properties in the Hamptons, where inventory continues to be a “defining challenge” for the market, along with rising mortgage rates, Miller said.

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“During the pandemic, the luxury and super-luxury product in the Hamptons was wiped clean,” Miller said. “The demand was insatiable, and as a result, that new product is not there.”

Last quarter, the Hamptons’ luxury market — defined as the top 10 percent of all sales — was hit especially hard, with inventory remaining at historic lows and fueling a record share of bidding wars, according to Miller Samuel’s quarterly report for Douglas Elliman.

Despite the lack of supply, the housing market in the Hamptons began to normalize in July, Miller said. New signed contracts were nearly on par with numbers reported in the same period last year, following the pandemic-era housing boom. 

“It’s a noticeable change in direction,” Miller said. 

New signed contracts in the Hamptons slipped 9 percent year-over-year, down from 65 to 59. New listings were flat, increasing from 128 in July 2022 to 129 last month. 

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