“You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them by looking backward”

~Steve Jobs

2021 was a vigorous year for Westchester County real estate.

Sellers did well. Buyers were more measured as they persevered. Agents and trades ran non-stop, trying to keep up with demand as supply levels dwindled.

But because it is real estate, as the year drew to a close, most of us were pondering what lay ahead in 2022 as much as 2021’s final numbers.

Connecting the dots moves you forward. But to Steve Jobs’ point, you need to look back, so first things first:

The Refreshed Home is very proud to share these numbers from our home staging sector. In 2021:

• 85 of TRH’s prepared properties were sold
• Total sales volume $79.5M . This brings TRH’s total volume of staged/sold properties to over $800M
• 81%  of properties (69 of 85) were single-family homes. Total volume $72,611,098 or $1,052,335 average
• 19%  of properties (16 of 85) were co-ops (8) or condos (8) Total volume  $6,912,250
• 8 more properties in contract Total list $4.314M

Home staging benefits both seller and buyer. Very best is knowing TRH helped 170 sets of people make a milestone decision and move on with their life!

A Deeper Dive

Data nerd that I am, there’s more:  Numbers that not only speak to the heart of what we do, but also hint at some of what 2022 will bring.

Interest in co-ops/condos typically ebbs and flows, depending on the market and the economy. Availability of the vaccine helped make 2021 a good year for sellers of community living properties.

The Refreshed Home makes professional listing prep accessible and palatable for all, but co-ops are one of our most rewarding projects.

These sellers have less equity, and the most to lose via ongoing maintenance fees and decreased interest when their property lingers. It’s a beautiful thing to show sellers and their agents just how little it takes to make a big difference and get their properties noticed, and sold.

Staging’s raison d’etre is to sell properties quickly, and for more money. I measure TRH’s staging efficacy by comparing three core stats of our sold properties vs those of county-wide sales, compiled by HGAR, our local MLS.

• Average selling price
• DOM (days on market, the # of days from LIST to CONTRACT)
• Percentage of original ask unit sold for

Here’s how our co-op and condo sales ranked against 2021 HGAR Westchester County figures:

TRH Average co-op sale  $324,156 with 59 DOM, getting  99% of ask

• vs HGAR $223,318 at 72 DOM and 95.9% of ask

TRH Average condo sale  $539,875 with 31 DOM, getting 101% of ask 

• vs HGAR  $553,765 at 58 DOM, and 97.8% of ask

WOO-HOO indeed!

NEXT: Connecting the dots to what’s ahead in 2022.