Real Estate

Right for all the wrong reasons – demand remains strong

At the beginning of 2026, Main Street asked area real estate writers, analysts, and agents what they were predicting for our area’s residential real estate market this year. They were correct in foreseeing that the Northwest corner of Connecticut and New England would stabilize around historically high price points as compared to the national market, which was already seeing price corrections in many overbuilt regions.

But our pundits were wrong about the forces, including mortgage rates and inflation, driving the residential real estate market. Who knew in January that a war would be started with Iran and that inflation and mortgage rates would rise, not fall as predicted? Or that New York City would elect a Democratic Socialist Muslim as mayor? In January, fixed rate 30-year mortgages were around 6% and in early July around 6.4% with little hope anytime soon of the rate cut predicted in January. Consumer confidence as measured by the University of Michigan sank to an all-time low in May 2026 to 44.6% from 56.4% in January. At the same time, the stock market reached new highs. 

Despite this economic and political turmoil, demand for full-time and weekend homes in the Northwest corner of Litchfield County has remained strong with limited inventory. The prediction that pricing in the Northwest corner would become more rational was accurate, with homes closing within five percentage points of listing prices. The fundamentals of the Northwest corner remain ever more attractive with proximity to major metropolitan areas, year-round recreational and cultural opportunities, high quality of life, and lower property taxes compared to metro and suburban centers.

Salisbury perpetually in demand

With very low property taxes, excellent private and public schools, and quality housing stock, Salisbury  remains the most sought-after town in the Northwest corner and the most active with 23 public sales in the first six months, not very different from last year. 

The median price of a single-family home in the first six months of the year reached $1.35 million, about the same as last year, but 80% above June 2024. Million-dollar homes drive the Salisbury market with the average home price of $1,829,022 for the six months ending this June, substantially above the median price. Houses went under contract within 38 days of listing at 96.9% of asking. Only 26 homes were for sale at the end of June, compared to 33 last year. Don’t expect a bargain in Salisbury.

The historic 1820 five-bedroom Georgian house at 299 Main Street (above, left) balances architectural heritage with a modern renovation and includes three antique barns on five acres in Lakeville. It sold in June above its listing price for $3,410,000 after only 15 days on the market.

Only nine houses for sale in Cornwall 

In three of the six Northwest towns, Cornwall, Kent, and Canaan/Falls Village, only one or two houses a month are sold – and sometimes none. This small sample distorts the calculated six-month median prices and historic six-month highs. 

There may be many Cornwall hamlets, but at the end of June only six homes had been sold in the previous six months, and just nine homes were listed for sale in the entire town. 

Like Salisbury, Cornwall’s first half 2026 residential price level is over $1,000,000, but houses are taking longer to sell, 44 days, than last June. June’s median price of $1,030,000 is 8% below June of 2024 and well below the six-month median record high for the town: $1,235,000 reached in February 2025.

The sale of the renovated, ready-to-move-in farmhouse built in 1800 at 23 Johnson Road in Cornwall (above, middle) closed in early January for $960,000 – just below the median price for the first six months of the year. Bordered by protected State of Connecticut land, it was originally listed for $1,185,000 in August 2025. The property included a 2,682-square-foot, three-bedroom, three-bath residence on 10.35 landscaped acres. 

Sharon rising

Traditionally Sharon, Cornwall, and Salisbury competed as the most expensive place to buy a house in Northwest Litchfield County. Sharon’s prices mid-year are tending up but still well below Salisbury and Cornwall. Although it took longer to sell a house in Sharon, an estimated 63 days, in the first half of the year, the six-month median price is well above the previous two years and approaching the record high of $880,000 achieved in February 2024. Like its neighbors, Sharon appears balanced between buyers and sellers with 20 houses sold in the first half of 2026 and 22 houses for sale.

21 South Ellsworth (above, right) is a charming antique house built in 1784 with three bedrooms and two bathrooms nestled into the landscape in the historic Ellsworth district in southwestern Sharon. During COVID it sold quickly for $875,000, over the listing price of $795,000. This June it sold for $1,050,000, over its listing price of $975,000. Bidding wars for desirable properties continue.

Kent

Only seven single family houses sold in the first six months of the year in Kent (condos are not included), and 23 residential properties were listed for sale at the end of June, suggesting that buyers may have the advantage in Kent. The June 2026 median price of $625,000 was below 2025 and the historic six-month high of $880,000 but 20% above the $522,250 level of June 2024. 

132 South Kent Road (top image) has a primary bedroom on the first floor with a fireplace and three bedrooms upstairs. It sold for $555,000 in April, well under the median price of $625,000 in the first half of the year. 

Canaan/Falls Village

Canaan/Falls Village, with a median price of $470,000 in the first half of the year, was the only Northwest town whose median sale price in 2026 was lower than in 2025 or 2024. Like Cornwall, Canaan sells only about one single family home a month but currently has 10 homes for sale – all listed at or above the median price. This small and erratic volume of sales explains the historic six-month high of $1,725,000, higher than any of the other towns, as only three houses were sold in six months between January and June of 2023.

A freight train rumbles by the conductor’s house twice a day during the week at 62 Railroad Street in Falls Village (left image). The original structure was built in 1874 by the Housatonic Railroad and doubled in size when first renovated in 2003. This 2,463-square-foot home on 0.23 acres with three bedrooms and two and a half baths underwent a total renovation after being purchased for $78,000 in 2019. The sale closed in February at $600,000 – above the Falls Village median price of $470,000 for the first six months of the year.

North Canaan catching up

This working-class town is attracting buyer attention for its affordable values at all price points. Like Sharon, North Canaan’s median price in the first half of the year was higher than in either 2025 or 2024. With a median price of $345,000 in 2026, $300,000 in 2025, and $317,000 in 2024, North Canaan was the least expensive of the six towns in every year and is now approaching the historic high of $385,000 set in the six months ending in April. 

Looking over fields and surrounded by fruit trees, 16 Brown’s Lane (right image) was built in 1986 on 0.91 acres just outside the hamlet of Canaan. This compact home was listed at $325,000 and went to contract within five days at $345,000, the median price for the first half of 2026 in North Canaan. With 1,252 square feet of living space, two bedrooms, and one bath, plus a two-car garage, it’s an example of affordability that can be found in North Canaan.

The big picture

Historically the first six months of the year are the strongest for home sales with research indicating that April or May is the best time to sell a house. Our local housing market responds slowly to change, so the second half of the year should be interesting. 

The unexpected seems to now be a constant and the Northwest corner will continue to attract buyers seeking an attractive safe haven. The detailed chart prepared for Main Street summarizes real estate activity by town, but the big picture of the Connecticut Northwest corner illustrates the overall strength of our region’s housing market in the first half of 2026. In general, median prices are higher, houses are selling at 96% of listing price or above, and inventory remains low. Overall the Northwest corner remains a seller’s market because of continued high demand and low inventory. •

Note: Figures presented in this article are drawn consistently from InfoSparks and CT Smart MLS.

Compiled by Christine Bates, real estate advisor with William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty, Licensed in CT and NY. Opinions expressed are those of the author alone.