46 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • APRIL 2020
PRESS HOME
CORONAVIRUS MAY DAMPEN MOVING SEASON
continued from page 45
This year started on a high note with the
January 2020 median home price for
Long Island (including Nassau, Suffolk
and Queens) closed sales at $480,000 up
6.4 percent over the prior year, according
to MLSLI.
Nassau’s median closing price was
$532,250, up 1.4 percent from $525,000 a
year ago, according to MLSLI. Suffolk’s
median reported closing price in January
was $401,750, up 5.7 percent from
$380,000 a year ago.
Median sales in Nassau and Suffolk (excluding
the Hamptons and North Fork)
were $450,000 according to Douglas
Elliman Real Estate’s Quarterly Survey
of Residential Sales 2019, provided by
Miller Samuel Inc. appraisers and consultants,
including condo and one- to
three-family sales.
Low interest rates helped fuel higher
home prices, providing a big boost.
Rates fell to as low as about 3.5 percent
for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage as of
mid-March, according to Bankrate.com.
“Interest rates came down. Sellers are
more realistic,” O’Connell said, noting the
public has grown accustomed to the new
State And Local Tax (SALT) deduction
cap. “The SALT laws have become our
new normal.”
Douglas Elliman’s report indicated that LI
(excluding the Hamptons and North Fork)
“listing inventory fell to a record low as
sales and prices continued to rise” in 2019.
“The scarcity of supply has pressed
prices higher for an extensive period,”
according to the Douglas Elliman report.
Properties remained on the market for
72 days since listing in 2019, down from
117 in 2010, according to Douglas Elliman.
The coronavirus, and the reactions to it,
put a big question mark over real estate
and the region.
“Nobody, regardless of your crystal ball,
can predict,” Conroy said.
O’Connell agreed.
“I don’t know what kind of access homeowners
will give us to homes,” O’Connell
said. “I think the year should end OK, but
I believe we’re going to have some bumps
in the middle. This is a world event, not
a local event.”
Providing open access to residences amid
coronavirus concerns could become an
issue.
“We had a good weekend with open
houses, but I’m seeing questions from my
agents,” O’Connell said in early March.
“What are we going to do about open
houses? The impact is ahead of us.”
Investors could rush to real estate, reassured
by the value of a tangible asset.
“They (interest rates) are historically
low,” Conroy said. “Look at the volatility
of the stock market. What is the best
place to invest your money? It’s in real
estate.”
Real estate could provide a refuge for
those seeking to invest, but also could
be impacted by the economic downturn.
“I think people who are broad-minded
will see this as a time of opportunity, a
time to lock in for 30 years at an amazing
interest rate,” O’Connell said. “We
entered the year really positive. The
coronavirus is an unknown factor.
O’Connell said “Confidence is everything,”
adding that she hopes LI real estate
will weather the coronavirus storm
as it has weathered other forces.
“Bricks and mortar are solid,” O’Connell
said. “You can hold it. You can feel it. Long
term, we’re going to be fine.”
“Long term, we’re going to be fine,”
says Deirdre O’Connell.
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