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Buyers looking to live closer to downtown Hartford are going to keep finding deals this spring, a new report from Zillow says.
The median home in what the listings portal site’s analysts call “suburban” ZIP codes in Greater Hartford gained $39,630 in value between July 2021 and March 2022 compared to a $30,211 value gain in “urban” ZIP codes, despite the latter being more expensive. Researchers found the median home value in Greater Hartford urban ZIP codes sat at $193,774 in March, compared to $311,475 in suburban areas.
In their report, Zillow researchers combined condominiums and single-family homes into a single category.
“In the beginning of the pandemic, home values in urban areas generally outpaced suburban areas, counter to what many expected during the rush for more space,” Zillow economist Nicole Bachaud, speaking about national-level trends, said in a statement. “And while urban home value gains have continued to accelerate, the suburbs are even hotter, showing just how strong demand is for limited suburban inventory. That could mean competition for homes will be lighter near city centers this home shopping season, something we haven’t been able to say for nearly a decade. That’s not to say shopping for a home in the city will be a leisurely affair, but any sliver of opportunity for buyers is welcome in this market.”
Home-sale data from The Warren Group, publisher of The Commercial Record, suggests buyers have indeed been headed in a more urban direction as they search for affordability in the midst of interest rate hikes.
The 208 single-family homes sold in Bridgeport during the first quarter represented a 7 percent jump from the sales volume seen during the same period in 2021. That was a faster jump than the state average and went along with a 16 percent increase in the year-to-date median home price, which hit $290,000 in March.
While there were fewer home sales in New Haven and Hartford, the median single-family sale prices in these cities were up 27 percent and 11 percent, respectively. The median sales price in New Haven was $265,000 in the first quarter and $195,000 in Hartford.
