Greenwich Real Estate Monthly - August 2011

We are done with the summer.I'm extremely proud to start this month's newsletter with the announcement that my team (Al Filippone Associates) was just named by The Wall Street Journal as the #1 team in New England (#11 in the United States), and I have been recognized as the highest producing agent year-to-date of over 30 agents on the team. For those of you with whom I've worked with this year, thank you.  I sincerely appreciate the opportunity and hope I was able to meet and even exceed your expectations as an agent.As for Greenwich Real Estate, the 2011 summer market was solid.  We witnessed 199 sales over the last three months, compared to 173 for the same period in 2010.  This adds up to 400 sales for the year compared to 344 in 2010.  Over the past three months we saw a lower median sales price, though when you extend the period to "Year to Date" the 2011 numbers are surprisingly close to 2010.I'm not going to sugar coat this and say that we are out of the woods and all in the future looks wonderful.  I'm not going to take some tiny details/growth-numbers and try to state that 2011 far exceeded 2010.  When looking at what happened over the past 9 months and comparing that to 2010, I'm seeing some surprising similarities.  List Price, Sales Price, Sales to List Price Ratio and Unit Sales are all very similar.  Even the time on the market is almost identical.While many are concerned about this and even more aren't accepting of it, I am not that worried.  What I believe we are witnessing right now is the new normal.  It doesn't make sense to me, nor has it ever, to see compounding growth of 15%+ every year.  This asset class, that so many of us invest in, also provides an extra perk: a roof over our heads.  Municipal bonds provide an extra perk of tax incentives and therefore give out a little less in interest.  Equities provide a greater growth potential/upside than government bonds, but are more volatile/risky. There is a give and take with anything we invest in today.Because of this extra perk (roof over our heads) I have always been a strong proponent of investing in real estate.  I see it as a great place to put your money for the long term.  While I think the expression has been used too much, "they aren't making any more of it" (land your house sits on).If you or anyone else you know is interested in investing in Greenwich real estate, I am currently working with some fantastic developers and advisors to create full blow analytical reports on specific areas and property sites.  We have had a lot of fun analyzing everything from the property envelopes (what you can build) to maximizing returns on additions to client's primary residences.   We're always looking for new projects and clients, so please send them my way!Sincerely,ScottScott P. Elwell - MBASenior Vice President - Al Filippone Associates @ William RaveisFounder/Real Estate Agent - GreenwichCT.com45 Field Point Road, Greenwich, CT 06830Mobile: 203.940.0444 : Email: scott@elwell.com