As summer reaches its peak, we brought together some of the top real estate brokers in the Hamptons for a mid-year discussion about the market. With inventory changes, buyers adjusting their strategies, and sellers paying close attention, we asked industry insiders what to expect in the second half of 2025. They shared insights on pricing strategies, buyer behavior, and the ongoing appeal of turnkey properties. The outlook is as complex as the area itself. However, it’s not just business — our panel also talked about how they enjoy the East End summer, including beach days, family time, sailing, and personal moments within their communities.
Enzo Morabito, Douglas Elliman
One of the most rewarding parts of this summer — both personally and professionally — has been having my son, Alessandro Morabito, join me in the business through a work-study program ahead of his final year in college. Watching him learn, grow, and engage with my team has been an incredible experience. It’s brought us closer together and added a meaningful new dimension to both our summer and our bond. It’s truly been a highlight I’ll never forget.
In regards to the market, the year started with a slower pace in the Hamptons real estate market, largely due to the uncertainty surrounding the current administration and cautious buyer sentiment. That said, momentum has been picking up, and we’re feeling a renewed energy as the season hits its stride. I’m optimistic about the months ahead — history has shown us time and again that the Hamptons market remains resilient, holding its value and activity even in the face of broader challenges.
Angela Boyer-Stump, Sotheby’s International Realty
Summer 2025 finally arrived! After some serious rainstorms, I am thrilled to see sunshine and beach days. Professionally, I have embraced meeting new clients both on the purchase and through extra added time freedom with our new marketing team at Sotheby’s International Realty. They are knocking it out of the ballpark and have allowed me to enjoy meeting new people, which in turn, generates more business. On a personal note, summer is truly such an enjoyable time of the year for gatherings. From barbecues, to cocktail parties, to fundraisers, to boat rides, to beach walks, the Hamptons are my favorite place to be. The best part of summer 2025, living in the Hamptons!
In terms of the Hamptons real estate market, all indicators show a stellar second half to the year. I already had three competitive bidding situations on the Buy side, and I do not see that slowing down. We are seeing new listings come onto the market, and listings that have been on the market for a while are selling. Summer energizes our buyers, and if the fall is anything like years past, we will see the same volume, maybe more. Pricing seems to be consistent with last year’s numbers, and new listings that come on are coming to market with competitive listing prices. If Sellers continue to list at market value, buyers will take advantage of mortgage rate drops, and the second half of the year will be epic! It’s a great time to be an agent here.
Aleksandrina Penkova, The Corcoran Group
The best part of summer 2025 has been a mix of both professional wins and personal joy. Professionally, I’m especially excited about the great listings I have in the pipeline — specifically not just because some are in highly desirable locations such as Southampton Village, but also because they represent the new construction segment of the market, which continues to attract strong interest. I’ve also been happy to effectively help both buyers and sellers this season, guiding successful deals and seeing happy outcomes on both sides.
I’ve been making the most of the season by taking full advantage of the variety of workout classes available this summer, and whenever I have a free moment, whether it’s early in the morning or late in the afternoon, you’ll find me at the beach.
About the market, we’ve had a solid year so far, and the momentum is continuing. The buyers who are out here now are serious, and I expect many of them to make a move by the end of the year. While there was some volatility in the stock market earlier this spring, it doesn’t seem to be a major factor right now. Buyers appear confident, and many are ready to make long-term investments in real estate. Historically, sellers also become more motivated as summer winds down — it’s a great time for them to lock in a deal before carrying a property through the winter.
For buyers, there’s currently more inventory to choose from, which gives them options they might not have come spring, when the market gets more competitive. I’ve been busy with buyers almost every day of the week. It’s an active, healthy market.
And while there was some volatility in the stock market earlier this spring, it doesn’t seem to be a major factor right now. Buyers appear confident, and many are ready to make long-term investments in real estate.
Matthew Breitenbach, Compass
I have been making time once a week to go to the beach with my family. I have four kids and run a real estate business, so it’s not an easy endeavor, but the reward has been incredible for our family this summer. We have the best beaches in the world here. I grew up in the Hamptons, spending summers living at the beach. Doing so helps the ocean become ingrained in your soul. It never leaves you. And I want that for my kids; it has been amazing watching them love the ocean just as I do. A highlight from these trips is trying to see how close we can build a sandcastle to the water and how long it can last before the ocean takes it out!
Professionally, I underwent a restructuring of my team back in 2023 and brought back my longtime partner, Kevin Geddie, to work alongside me. I also hired Taylor Jayne, a full-time, in-house marketing director, to help curate and grow the BAT brand. The best part of this summer has been seeing our internal team fully gel and all of our hard work from the past two years start to bear fruit. Reaching $100,000,000 in sales already, and it’s just July, is exciting, but I’ve also noticed that this feeling is rather fleeting and not that profound. And to me, that has been the actual best part of summer 2025 professionally.
That I have had this mindset shift, I feel that what is different about reaching $100,000,000 now, compared to when I would hit sales numbers in the past, is that I don’t care that we have reached that number. It feels good, and I have put in a lot of work, along with my team, to get us to this point. Still, I think it doesn’t hit as hard because, at this point in my life and career, I truly understand that real estate is something I love. I am blessed to love what I do as much as I do, but nothing will ever be as important as my faith and my family. I feel this business has not become about growth for me, but about doing it better. The more I align my priorities — God, family, and then real estate — the more my business seems to succeed. And that has been the absolute best part of the summer: having this clarity, and it feels good.
When it comes to the Hamptons real estate market, here are a few high-level points. What I do not understand is that nobody is discussing the fact that the Hamptons had the highest sales volume in Q1 in the history of the Hamptons and the highest volume since 2022. In Q1 2025, the Hamptons achieved $1.2 billion in sales volume. For scope, in Q1 2024, the Hamptons generated $811M, compared to $911M in Q1 2023.
I think the fact that this has not received much press and has been under the radar has helped the market because the stock market’s crazy swings a few months ago seemed to scare a lot of sellers straight, which in turn fed the already growing Hamptons market. So, in Q2, you will see some numbers drop because there was a pause of a month or two in the market, but I have buyers who trusted me and bought during that swing and are very happy now. In Q3, you will see huge Hamptons numbers. Not only have I seen my business grow rapidly recently, but top agents and managers I have spoken to have also noticed the same. I expect the surge to continue into Q4, barring any catastrophic economic events globally. The increasing inventory will continue to fuel the market, much like adding logs to a fire, so it is closely tied to inventory as well. If the rates drop and/or Trump gets the no capital gains move on real estate through, look out, because the market could hit some significant milestones. What’s exciting about the Hamptons? It’s like a Ferrari in second gear. In the past, it was more like a BMW or Mercedes (no offense from a guy who drives a Mercedes). However, the Hamptons market now has more potential for unprecedented heights than ever in its history.
The Hamptons market bottomed in Q3 last summer. A summer that everyone thought would be a bounce back actually fell flat, but the post-election market surged, and it continued to surge early in 2025 as well. Then we had the tariff pause, and now we are back flying with the momentum of the summer here. And since then, we are on a rising trajectory. What has helped is that inventory numbers have grown at about 11 percent per quarter over the last year and a half.
The Hamptons is now a mix of country town and resort town. A country town for New Yorkers as a weekend escape or for full-time residents who commute only a few times a week or month to New York City for business. And a resort town for all of the new Florida residents, especially (I call the Hamptons the reverse snowbird effect), and the typical resort money from the NY tri-state, globally, and also all of the big U.S money in areas in Texas, Colorado, and California, on top of the Florida surge.
Joan Hegner, The Corcoran Group
As a long-time broker out in Montauk, I get asked a lot about “How is the market?” and “What’s your read?” So here we go! I can honestly say it has been the most unpredictable trend I’ve experienced in the market in quite a few years; however, being a glass-half-full gal, I believe what has so many prospective buyers watching and waiting may loosen up come this fall. Several factors suggest that inventory levels will continue to rise, sellers will make price adjustments, and a slight drop in rates should lead to a more robust response in activity.
On a personal level, I had a front row seat to assisting my longtime friend and Montauk’s beloved pharmacist, Frank Calvo, create the most beautiful space at Montauk Chemists Pharmacy. This vitally needed service took almost a year from inception to fruition, following Montauk’s loss of its pharmacy last October when White’s Drug Store closed. It’s been gratifying to know that our community will now have all it needs for continued health and wellness.
Montauk has been extraordinarily busy, creating great buzz for the upcoming fall season as prime time for amplified real estate action!
The best part of summer 2025 personally has been staying locally in the Hamptons all summer. Typically, events have me traveling all over in the summertime, but thankfully, 99 percent of my summer was in the Hamptons. Professionally, it has been connecting with those clients who are in town for the summer and being able to build those relationships further and make up for lost time during the off-season when they are away.
I see the Hamptons real estate market in the second half of the year continuing to be fruitful. With the economic/financial circumstances that arose at the start of the new, there was trepidation for consumers, but over the last few months, and as we progress forward, I see the constant force that is the finite nature of Hamptons real estate continuing to drive transactions.
