‘The Hamptons housing market had more fourth quarter sales and the fewest listings in inventory than there had been at any point in the past 6 years. Fiscal cliff tax planning was a key driver of the market, especially at the upper end, resulting in the highest average sales price in more than seven years. We saw many more sales above $1M and a record number of sales over $5M. We anticipate that the increased market momentum will continue to carry into 2013.

 

The North Fork housing market also saw a drop in listing inventory, which fell sharply to a four-year low. Thanks to record low mortgage rates, the fastest monthly absorption rate in more than four years, and rising sales, there was some upward pressure on housing prices. With a stable listing discount, negotiability between buyers and sellers remained stable as well, while average marketing times increased as tight inventory caused older listings to be more readily absorbed. We expected conditions to continue toimprove in 2013.’  elliman.com  reports