Home prices in 2008 in Greenwich declined the most in three decades, and the number of homes plunged by more than a third, as the town's real estate began to show the effects of financial sector cutbacks, Bloomberg News reported, citing data compiled Prudential Connecticut Realty.
Greenwich's 2008 median home price dropped 7% to $1.95 million - - the largest percentage decline since 1977 - - with single family homes sales plummeting to 460 from 726, Prudential said, Bloomberg reported.
Tony Greenwich sets the tone
With its large homes, ample land, quaint shoreline, and short, 50-minute train commute to Manhattan, Greenwich, for generations, has been a preferred suburb of executives of some the world largest multinational corporations who work in New York City. More recently, Greenwich has become the de-facto 'hedge fund capital of America.'
Economist Richard Felson said the Greenwich home value decline "indicates that the economic downturn is pervasive and pronounced."
"Rare is the year that you see large home price declines in Greenwich, as we are dealing primarily with high-end to very-high-end home buyers," Felson said. "Many Greenwich home buyers are people who have the means to pay in cash, these are the check writers, and the fact that they're pulling back the reins shows that they believe economic conditions will be difficult over the next year. These buyers often also are key corporate decision makers, so we can get a read on their confidence from this data."
Sector / Economic Analysis: The Greenwich, Connecticut median home price stat speaks for itself. When cash buyers are pulling back the reins, that's a conservative stance on the part of high-end consumers - - something you only see in pronounced recessions.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-21-2009 @ 3:37PM
BHarrison said...
So, as the home market prices drop, more and more home buyers with mortgages are being sucked into having "negative values" . . . they are becoming victums of "deflation".
The question is: "How many of these people will continue to pay mortgages for values that greatly exceed the new adjusted values for comparable homes? " Will this become a new economic problem and factor in the near future?
The corrupt CEOs, Congressmen, and other market manipulators have virtually destroyed the value system in our nation with their massive FRAUDS that created a SBUSTANTIAL SURPLUS INVENTORY of both commercial and residential homes and condos, and undermined the market value.
Is there any doubt that these CEOs, CFOs, and others shouldn't be indicted, prosecuted, imprisoned, heavily fined, and required to return their ill gotten gains to the corporations?
These guys are still receiving obscenely exorbitant salaries, and in many cases bonuses and other compensations for their felonious and/or incompetent management of our FIs, corporations, and markets / funds . . . Those who have overseen the orchestration and perpetuation of pyramid and Ponzi schemes, and other forms of fraud should be prosecuted and fined to the fullest extent of the Law.
Meanwhile, the American people just apathetically sit back and watch their own persoal demise due to the corrution of these individuals.