Long Island houses for sale can go to contract in days, depending on price, location, finances

By the time Mary Ellen and George Borghese put their house on the market this year, they had been out of the real estate market for two decades. 

While the couple and their daughter lived in Mary Ellen Borghese 's childhood home — a four-bedroom in Massapequa with a stone chimney — the market changed dramatically. Pandemic conditions pushed the pace of home sales as inventory dwindled, creating a market unfamiliar to her. 

"It just surprised me how quickly everything all kind of unfolded," Borghese said of the home sale, which is set to close in June well above asking.

That the sellers had accepted an offer in just four days — and signed contracts in just over two weeks — is reflective of a market experts say moves quickly for homes that are priced appropriately. In April, Zillow reported 18.5% of February home sales nationwide were pending within one week.

With low inventory and high demand, there are "so many buyers," and too few homes to sell, said Linda Lugo, a Huntington-based real estate broker on the Board of Managers for OneKey MLS. This means Long Island remains in the hands of sellers, despite a national real estate market that has grown friendlier to buyers in recent months. 

'When something's priced right, they're going fast'

Signature Premier listing agent Jeanine Entenmann speculated strategic pricing and staging drew buyers to the Borgheses' listing. The weather was also getting warmer, she added, and buyers commented on the line at the open house. Buyers and agents often have preapprovals and terms at the ready now, she said, which can also speed up the process.

"I knew that the market was hot for real estate out here, but never did I think that it would go as quickly as it did," said Mary Ellen Borghese, 56, who works as a dispute resolution associate for the Better Business Bureau.

A home priced "right" might be on the market for just a weekend or two, listing agent Eileen O'Hara tells her clients. 

"If we price it aspirationally, it's going to be on the market longer, and you're going to lose the benefit of accurate pricing from the beginning," said O'Hara, of Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty.

Experts agreed pricing a listing according to the local market can make the difference between selling or sitting; but at the appropriate price, many listings move quickly. 

"Properties are flying off the market," Lugo said. "Lower the price range, the faster they're going."

The trend is, especially the lower end, properties are going over the asking price still.

— Linda Lugo, broker on the OneKey MLS Board of Managers

In the Huntington area, Lugo estimated home sales average 35 days from listing to contract. For anything under $1 million, she said her estimate would drop to 20 days on the market.

"When something's priced right, they're going fast," Lugo said. "And the trend is, especially the lower end, properties are going over the asking price still."

The climate encourages sellers to ask buyers to waive home inspections, appraisals or mortgage contingencies to keep up with the market. Lugo cautions buyers against taking this type of risk.

But the speed at which a sale goes into contract is dependent upon various factors, including price point and the exchange between the parties' attorneys, experts said. 

"Going into contract is relative, because you may get an accepted offer but sometimes the attorneys go back and forth," said Sandi Polinsky, broker and owner of Goldilocks Real Estate. How quickly an inspection is booked or a down payment is wired can also influence the timing of the sale, Polinsky said.

Century 21 AA Realty broker Frank DellAccio, who is also on the OneKey MLS Board of Managers, tells his clients to expect to find a qualified buyer within 38 to 55 days of listing the property. Once a buyer is found, DellAccio estimates it takes eight to 12 days to go into contract. 

If a property is generating a great deal of interest, the listing can go into contract sooner, he said.

"It's somewhat dependent on price range," DellAccio said, "in relationship to the geography."

If the average selling price in the town is $600,000 to $700,000, and a home is listed for $550,000, he offered, that listing will likely go quickly and for over asking. 

Newsday spoke with experts and home sellers about several sales that moved relatively quickly in recent months.

Massapequa

As they prepare to move to the Poconos, the Borgheses have sold the Lincoln Avenue property Borghese said has been in her family since the late 1970s.

The four-bedroom, 2½-bathroom house sits on a 0.36-acre lot, according to the listing, and has a basement. The primary suite is on the second level, she said.

The Borgheses listed the property on March 6 for $980,000, listing agent Entenmann said. An open house on March 8 facilitated more than 60 showings before the sellers accepted an offer two days later, Entenmann said.

Following a back-and-forth between lawyers, the parties signed contracts on March 23, Entenmann said. Mary Ellen Borghese said she could not publicly disclose the sale price until closing next month.

To prospective sellers, Borghese advised working with an agent who can offer guidance and streamline the process.

Malverne

Madelaine Valenti was given 90 days to sell her three-bedroom, one-bathroom Malverne home amid divorce proceedings late last year, she said.

Listing agent O'Hara told Valenti that if the house had not sold in 30 days, they may have had to reduce the price, Valenti said. It took just 14 days for O'Hara to get the sale into contract. The property was listed for $779,000 and sold for $795,000, O'Hara said.

"Once you have a buyer, it's so crazy," said Valenti, who works for Plainview-based costume company Rubies II. "It's like before you know it you're packing up and you're moving."

The initial buyer backed out, Valenti said, but there were backup buyers waiting.

According to the listing, the house is 1,726 square feet and sits on a 0.138-acre lot. The address falls within the Valley Stream 13 School District.

East Meadow

"As long as the house is listed at the right price, it shouldn't take more than a week and a half to be under contract," Jeffrey Memisha, of Wantagh-based Realty Advisors Inc., said he tells clients.

On Spruce Lane in East Meadow, a three-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch listed on Jan. 28 went into contract in four days, according to Nick Barberio, another broker at Realty Advisors.

"East Meadow is a super hot area," Barberio said. "All the listings in that area seem to go very quickly."

The home was listed for $739,999, which Barberio described as an "entry-level priced home." The sale closed on April 16 at $815,000. The 1,200-square-foot house had a fully finished basement, Barberio said.

"A lot of the offers that were there were from first-time homebuyers," Barberio said.

The address falls within the East Meadow School District. 

Hicksville

In Hicksville, a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home listed for $599,999 went into contract in just five days in January, according to Memisha and Barberio. The house sold for $708,000, Barberio said. 

The listing identifies the home as a 960-square foot house on a 0.138-acre lot. The address falls within the Hicksville public schools district. 

As a ranch-style home, the property had wide appeal, Barberio said: a first-time buyer could imagine building out, or a retiree might want it as s. 

"Ranch-style homes are one of the most desirable home styles on Long Island," Barberio said in an email.  

The agents held private showings on a Thursday and Friday, then open houses that Saturday and Sunday, according to Barberio. 

"This strategy allowed us to get over 60 groups through the home in only four days, which created strong competition and resulted in over 20 offers," Barberio said.

Plainview

Listing agent Holly Gottlieb put a three-bedroom, three-bathroom home on the market on March 6 for Goldilocks Real Estate. By March 17, the listing was under contract, according to Polinsky.

The Maplewood Drive property measures 1,689 square feet and sits on a 0.23-acre lot within the Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District, according to the listing. There is a two-car garage, central air conditioning and a fenced-in backyard, the listing says.

The sellers listed the property for $949,888 and accepted an offer of over $1 million, Polinsky said. She could not disclose the exact price before closing.

When it comes to the speed of a sale, some variables are out of the seller's and agent's control.

"It seems like some go faster than others, but there are certain factors that people don't even realize," Polinsky said. "I would say, from the time that it hits the market, two to three weeks to get an accepted offer, and then 10 days to two weeks to get fully executed. Only because of outside influences."

To buyers, Polinsky recommends making the best possible offer and not thinking about competing bids. She also warns that needing to sell a house before making the purchase can be prohibitive in such a competitive market.

"You could offer $300,000 over asking, but if your money is tied up in another property, that's not going to fly," Polinsky said.