Last October, November, December

Bonny Aarons -Prudential Elliman - Last October, November, December
I thought we would never sell another house. I thought no one would
ever want to rent a house here. It was doom and gloom because after
all we are a second home community and who needs a second home?
Deals fell apart, people said they were afraid (and these were very
wealthy people) and the outlook was not bright. When 2009 began and we
had a new President and things began to look up very slightly but no
one knew what to expect and it was shaky. The potential buyers and
renters were saying "well if there is a real great deal, call me".
"If someone is hungry, call me". And there were real deals and I
called them and mostly they said, things will get worse, prices will
go down. There were one or two that said, yes this is a good deal and
in fact did buy and yes they got a very good deal.
But still, most people were happy to wait, they waited through February without a word, you could hear a pin drop on main street in East Hampton in
February, we were cold and buried in snow and no one cared about the
Hamptons. March was not much better with the exception of a few brave
souls that felt the time was now to buy and yes they got a very good
deal. Suddenly it was mid April and the renters woke up, they called
and wanted "cheap" deals on expensive houses and for the most part it
did not happen that way. The buyers woke up and looked for cheap
deals on expensive houses and for the most part did not get them.
There were customers who read the NY Times and said, I want a home for
50% off - do you have one for me. I replied, yes but not the ones
that you want, and that was the truth. I ask you, the population that
comes to the Hamptons for all the wonderful reasons that make it what
it is, did you not believe we would have summer this year? Did you
think the government would bail out your rentals and purchases? By
the beginning of May, reality set in. It was indeed going to be
summer in the Hamptons in 2009 and people wanted to be here in nice
homes. They wanted them for rent and they wanted them to buy and when
they found that they could not "steal" them, deals began to happen and
happen fast. So although this is not 2007 and prices have dropped
from the high between 20 and 30% - it is a price adjustment and not
desperation. There are good deals but not giveaways.
There are clearly differences that have come to the Hamptons market
due to the economic downturn, and there are differences in what the
buyers and renters want.
However, it is clear that the real estate market has returned to the Hamptons and that this is a good time to buy and to rent.