study finds fairfield county leads metro region in absorbing NYC exodus

via Westchester & Fairfield County Business Journal

By Phil Hall | Published on May 12, 2021

Fairfield County was the most popular destination for New York City residents seeking to relocate from the pandemic-plagued Big Apple to a suburban location, according to new data released by PropertyShark.com.

While the city recorded a 28% drop in real estate sales between March 2020 and February 2021, the surrounding metro area experienced a surge of activity. Connecticut’s home sales increased by 20% from 2019 to 2020 while condo sales saw a 17% rise.

And Connecticut’s new residents wanted more space than before. The average home sold in Fairfield County in 2020 had 1,965 square feet — 129 square feet more than the average home sold one year earlier. The average size grew by 98 square feet in Westchester.

Although the suburb with the largest increase in home sales during 2020 was Toms River, New Jersey, Fairfield County localities occupied six of the top 10 destinations on PropertyShark.com’s rankings. Fairfield placed second with 353 more home sales in 2020 than in 2019, a 46% spike, while Westport placed third with 661 home sales in 2020, up 109% year-over-year.

Other Fairfield County localities in the top 10 were Stratford in fifth place, Stamford in sixth, New Canaan in ninth and Norwalk in tenth. Greenwich, which placed 14th, was the priciest of 2020’s suburban destinations – its median sale prices ballooned year-over-year by 43% $1.77 million, and PropertyShark.com noted Greenwich’s 06830 represented the 92nd-most expensive ZIP Code nationwide last year.