October 2023 was surprisingly resilient, given the macro (interest rates) and micro (low inventory) environment. It is remarkable that with a -30% decrease in Units Listed that both Units Sold (-18%) and Units Pended (-17%) did not experience a similar rate of decline compared to the same period last year. Also notable was the material increase in the Days on Market (+64%) compared to October 2022 and the more modest increase in the ASP (+7%). Fewer properties sold at a slower rate but at a higher Average Sale Price in October 2023 compared to October 2022.

When comparing October 2023 to pre-pandemic October 2019, last month experienced an +11% increase in Units Pended with -41% fewer Units Listed – that’s extraordinary! Given the lack of inventory, it’s no wonder that Units Sold decreased (-22%) in October 2023 versus October 2019. More properties went under contract in October 2023 compared to October 2019, with significantly less inventory.

How is Princeton performing year-to-date (YTD)? Units Sold (-20%) and Units Listed (-20%) both decreased while Days On Market (+14%) increased compared to January-October 2022. As for January-October 2023 versus January-October 2019 (pre-pandemic), Units Sold (-19%), Units Listed (-36%), and Days On Market (-44%) all decreased. Year-to-date, fewer Units Sold because there were fewer Units Listed.

The January-October 2023 ASP (+13%) and MSP (+14%) increased versus January-October 2022. Compared to January-October 2019, the January-October 2023 ASP and MSP increased +37% and +41%, respectively. Please note that the data I share includes properties sold via BrightMLS. Every year there are sales occur outside BrightMLS. For both consistency and to present timely information, I exclude the information associated with these off-market sales in my analysis. The competition for available inventory has most likely caused the consistent Average Sale Price and Median Sale Price increases.

So what is happening now? There are currently only 37 Active Units between $325,000 and $4,250,000, 15 Active Under Contract Units between $379,000 and $12,000,000, and 16 Pending Units between $525,000 and $4,450,000 in Princeton. Lastly, five properties have properties have been introduced thus far in November.

As always, if you are thinking about buying, selling, or want to learn more about the Princeton area real estate market, please don’t hesitate to call (917-396-5880) or email!