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The South Fork is having its worst year since the financial crisis
Overbuilding, overcrowding and high prices are to blame, observers say
The Hamptons’ South Fork is breathing heavy under its own weight.
The longtime getaway of New York’s ultra-wealthy is experiencing its worst real estate slump since the financial crisis more than a decade ago, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Overbuilding, overcrowding and the traffic that comes with it, as well as high pricing, is giving some would-be homeowners pause and is making some homeowners think of packing up and going elsewhere.
Younger buyers in particular are opting for the less-crowded North Fork, the Hudson Valley in central New York, and the perennial high-society haunts of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
“I do know a couple of people that have done the Hamptons for years and done the commute and decided that Westchester or the Hudson Valley is a better option,” said Compass’ Jared Seligman, who recently bought and sold a home in the Hudson Valley.
Sales dropped on the South Fork by 18 percent year-over-year in 2019 — putting total sales two percent lower than 2010 — and the median home price was down 10.2 percent, according to a Douglas Elliman report.
Former WeWork CEO Adam Neumann recently sold his home for a loss. That’s not to say there aren’t big deals in the works.
“All of 2019, every day, every real-estate broker walked into their office, they saw price reductions,” said Judi Desiderio of Hamptons-based Town & Country Real Estate, according to the Journal.
Many older Hamptons homeowners are having trouble moving their large properties, which don’t seem to appeal to many younger buyers.
Marie-Eve Berty is one of them. She and her husband Michel spent nearly 40 years regularly visiting the Hamptons and finished an eight-bedroom home there in 2012. It’s been on the market for two years and the ask has dropped at least a million dollars to $9.9 million without a sale. [WSJ] — Dennis Lynch