Columbia surpasses Dutchess in home prices

The median sale price of homes in Columbia County increased 7.2% from 2021 to 2022, with the price rising from 345,000 to $370,000. Between 2022 and 2023, the median price jumped 16.7% from $370,000 to $432,000, according to the report.

During the same three-year time period, housing inventory in the county decreased from 1,011 homes for sale in 2021 to 631 home put on the market in 2023, or a 37.5% decrease.

Multiple factors, including the rise in sale prices, decrease in inventory and increased mortgage rates has made it harder to buy a home in the county, said Jason Walch, president of the Columbia-Greene Association of Realtors.

“Mortgage rates are definitely a factor,” he said. They’ve more than doubled in the last five years. It’s a lot more expensive to borrow. The lack of housing inventory is also causing prices to rise even more because there are more people moving into the area and fewer homes on the market.”

The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage the week of March 19, 2020, was 3.65%, according to mortgage lender Freddie Mac. During the week of March 21, 2024, the average rate for the same type of mortgage was 6.87%, a roughly 88% increase across those five years.

Homeowners are also finding it difficult to move and buy bigger homes due to prices increasing, Walch said.

“There are definitely fewer houses on the market, unless you’re moving out of the area,” he said. “It’s more difficult to buy a bigger house because prices have gone up. A lot of people have stayed in their homes and looked at doing additions or renovations as opposed to moving out.”

The lack of new residential construction has exacerbated the inventory problem, Walch said.

“There’s very little construction in the area, which is a big factor as to why inventory is so low,” he said.

Construction of denser housing developments in areas such as Hudson could help increase inventory, and maintain the rural nature of the county, Walch said.

“We need denser housing on smaller lots where there’s municipal water and sewer,” he said. “We can still keep the rural integrity of the area and still maintain more and denser housing in the areas that can support it.”

The median sale price of homes in Columbia County overtook Dutchess County’s number in 2023.

The median sale price for a home in Dutchess County in 2023 was $420,000, or $12,000 less than Columbia County’s $432,000.

Dutchess County has more townhouses and condominiums, while the housing stock in Columbia County is made up primarily of single-family homes, Walch said.

“Probably the biggest reason is because there are more condos and townhomes in Dutchess,” he said. “There tends to not be as many in Columbia County. We have mostly single-family homes.”

Townhouses and condos appreciate at different levels than single-family homes, which impacts their sale price, Walch said.

“There’s only so much appreciation for a townhome or condo,” he said. “They appreciate at a different level compared to the single-family homes we have here (in Columbia County),” he said.

Dutchess County also has more housing due to the larger population, and more affordable areas, Walch said.

“Some areas like Poughkeepsie will bring down the number because they have areas that are more affordable, and we don’t really have an area like that in Columbia County,” he said.

In 2023 the population of Dutchess County had a population of 297,150 people, and the population in Columbia County was 60,470, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The housing market is tough for buyers, sellers and renters, Walch said.

“Renting is tough, there’s not a lot of rentals, and there’s not enough construction of new rental properties,” he said. “Looking to buy is also tough, with high interest rates and lack of options of what to buy because there aren’t a lot of homes on the market. There’s no ideal situation unless you’re going to be selling and moving out of the area, because you can move to a different state where it’s cheaper.”

The COVID-19 pandemic hastened the lack of inventory and increase in home prices, as people moved to the county from more congested areas, but remote work was the starting point, Walch said.

“Having the (Amtrak) train station in the area gave people the ability to commute into work a few times a week,” he said. “Now, more people work remotely and that was the biggest factor. COVID accelerated it because more companies accepted the remote work style.”

The county’s housing inventory crunch and high sale prices may remain the same without an increase in new home construction, Walch said.

“Unless we have new construction or new inventory, I think we’re going to maintain the same levels,” he said.

Home values could also stay at the current levels or fall due to the tightening of available housing inventory, Walch said.

“Housing is not going to appreciate at the same rate as the study,” he said. “I think it’s going to maintain or depreciate in value based on the lack of inventory.”