Seller's Market: Low Inventory, High Prices For LI Real Estate

The Multiple Listing Service of Long Island has released its latest housing numbers, and January saw a continued increase in the area's home sales year over year.

Home prices on Long Island have been steadily increasing over the last few years, MLSLI reported. And though there have been some month-to-month dips, the overall trend is for a strong housing market on the Island.

The most recent numbers show that trend continuing. In Nassau County, the average sale price was $525,000 for January, beating the December average of $515,000. It is also higher than the January 2018 sales, which averaged $500,000.

Suffolk County also saw an increase. While the average home price in January was $380,ooo -- only slightly higher than the December average of $377,000 -- it was significantly better than last January, when the average was $359,000.

But while the price of homes is increasing, the number of homes sold is on the decline. While the winter months are historically the slow season for real estate, the numbers have still decreased year-over-year. In Nassau County, this January saw 916 home sales, compared to 2018's 942 -- a 2.8 percent drop. It was also down from December's sale number of 1,035.

Things were even worse in Suffolk, with 1,154 sales this January, compared to 1,255 last year -- an 8 percent decrease. It was also lower than the December sales of 1,457 homes.

Low sales figures don't mean things are bad, though. With low inventory and high home prices, it means that it's currently a seller's market.

Photo: Patch