NEWPORT – Over the past year, the luxury real estate market in Newport has been extremely active, with million dollar properties spending fewer days on the market than in previous years.

But it’s not just luxury properties that are changing fast. Local real estate agents see properties below the million dollar mark selling even faster than their more outlandish counterparts. Homes below the seven-digit threshold receive multiple offers on their first day on the market above the asking price.

People have also moved to Newport since the COVID pandemic started about a year ago, because they felt safer here than in the cities.

A record year

In 2020, Lila Delman Real Estate agents had a record year. Creative Director Brandyn Brunelle said sales of properties over $ 1 million had nearly doubled year on year.

“In 2019, statewide there were over $ 1.1 billion in sales. In 2020, there were over $ 2.07 billion in sales. So that’s just one year after another, from 2019 to 2020, “he said.” So in 2021, this year, our sales to date have been an almost 50% increase in volume (Q1) from 2020 to 2021, which is huge. That’s a staggering number in our first quarter. “

After:Newport County Real Estate Transactions: April 13

Brunelle said one of the reasons for Lila Delman’s drastic increase in sales is that she has participated in seven of the state’s 10 biggest real estate sales to date, which is more than double than any other. business.

“For us, we have had tremendous success. We see that this is coming from different outlets. Generally, we’ve had a lot of business in the Northeast as a whole, ”he said.

But recently, Lila Delman has seen an increase in buyers coming from across the country. Brunelle said customers have come from as far away as California, Florida and Texas.

“Rhode Island as a whole, but Newport in particular, has really come on the map for so many people who work remotely,” he said. “They are realizing that they are able to love where they live, and they now have the flexibility to work remotely and really cut down on that commute and enjoy life in a city by the sea.”

After:Four Newport area homes sell for over $ 1 million

After:Home in Historic Hill neighborhood of Newport sells for $ 4.55 million

For many, Newport is an attractive place to settle due to its location between two major cities, Boston and New York. Brunelle said it gave residents the option of traveling to town for a meeting, and that there were major airports nearby for those who like to travel.

Banks practically give money

It’s not just the million dollar homes that are selling fast. Paul Leys, one of the co-owners of Gustave White Sotheby’s International Realty, said homes at all prices in Newport were selling fast. In fact, homes below the million dollar rate move faster than homes in the luxury market, he said.

“I’ve been doing this for 33 years now, and I’ve never seen a seller’s market like the one we know now,” he said.

The main reason for the seller’s market is the lack of inventory. Leys said agents are looking for homes to put on the market because there is a real shortage of inventory for buyers to choose from. Currently, Leys said there could be 15 or 20 buyers interested in buying the same property.

After:Tiverton home values ​​rise as scorching real estate market continues

Besides the low inventory, Leys said low mortgage interest rates encourage people to buy a home.

“For all intents and purposes, banks are almost giving money away with low and low interest rates… interest rates that just haven’t been seen in decades,” Leys said. “You can get a 30-year mortgage for 3%, or something like that, which is really unheard of.

“So even people who have money, who have money in their pocket, often they don’t even pay in cash. They go looking for a mortgage, because they don’t want to take the money out. themselves the portfolios they’re putting money into. So they’re going to go and get a mortgage just because it’s so cheap to get a mortgage. ”

The pandemic has also played a role in the influx of buyers to Newport. With things getting back to normal, Leys said it would be interesting to see if this lasted.

Another reason Leys said Newport is attractive to buyers is that home prices are more affordable than where his agency’s clients come from. Many of his clients tell him that what sells for $ 1 million in Newport would be worth around $ 3 million where they came from.

“If they’re from the Hamptons or where they’re from, real estate in other metro destinations is more expensive than… in Newport,” he said.

An increase in property taxes

Kathryn Leonard, who is a real estate agent at Lila Delman and was named the agency’s top real estate agent recently, said some people who own homes in Newport are selling them due to a rise in property taxes.

“The new valuations have brought in higher (home) values ​​based on sales over the past 18 months,” said Leonard, who also sits on Newport City Council.

The housing market in Newport is not much different from that of other port cities such as Middletown and Portsmouth. Leonard said that in the past 400 days, only 12 homes over $ 4 million have been sold, which isn’t that huge.

“Many have come to Newport and due to the offer of property we are an island, you cannot replicate the land. For this reason, prices have increased, especially in recent months, ”she said.

Homes below the million dollar mark are also selling fast.

“It’s not at all unusual for a property under $ 800,000 or $ 900,000 to receive multiple offers on the first day, often above the asking price,” she said.

Bethany Brunelle can be reached at [email protected], 907-575-8528 or @bethanyfreuden1 on Twitter.