📊 July Housing Market Update: Chautauqua and Cattaraugus Counties

 

🏡 July 2026 Housing Market Update

Here’s a quick look at how the residential real estate markets performed in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus Counties in July, along with the year-to-date numbers.

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📍 CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY

📊 July 2026 vs. July 2025

🏠 New Listings: 154 ⬆️ 4.1%
✍️ Pending Sales: 102 ⬆️ 4.1%
🔑 Closed Sales: 99 ⬆️ 3.1%
💲 Median Sale Price: $180,000 ⬆️ 9.0%
💵 Average Sale Price: $201,783 ⬇️ 15.9%
⏳ Days on Market: 33 ⬇️ 34.0%
🏷️ List Price Received: 98.4% ⬆️ 0.7%
📦 Homes for Sale: 323 ⬆️ 18.3%
📈 Months of Inventory: 4.0 ⬆️ 14.3%

📅 2026 YEAR-TO-DATE vs. 2025

🏠 New Listings: 820 ⬆️ 7.6%
✍️ Pending Sales: 572 ⬇️ 1.9%
🔑 Closed Sales: 488 ⬆️ 3.6%
💲 Median Sale Price: $178,500 ⬆️ 14.1%
💵 Average Sale Price: $213,242 ⬇️ 0.3%
⏳ Days on Market: 49 ➖ No Change
🏷️ List Price Received: 97.1% ⬆️ 0.6%

🔎 OUR TAKE — CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY

The Chautauqua County market continues to show solid strength while gradually becoming more balanced.

The number that stands out is the 14.1% year-to-date increase in median sale price, while closed sales are also up 3.6%. At the same time, inventory has increased 18.3%, giving buyers considerably more choices than they had during the extremely tight markets of the past few years.

July was particularly active. Pending and closed sales both increased, homes that sold moved significantly faster, and sellers received an average of 98.4% of their most recent asking price.

One interesting contrast is the July average sale price, which dropped 15.9%, while the median increased 9.0%. That's a good reminder that one month's average can be heavily influenced by the mix of properties that happen to close. The stronger 14.1% year-to-date median increase gives us a better indication of the overall direction of home values.

Bottom line: Buyers have more choices, but desirable homes that are properly priced are still selling. For sellers, pricing and presentation remain critical as inventory continues to grow.

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📍 CATTARAUGUS COUNTY

📊 July 2026 vs. July 2025

🏠 New Listings: 110 ⬆️ 44.7%
✍️ Pending Sales: 47 ⬇️ 20.3%
🔑 Closed Sales: 70 ⬆️ 6.1%
💲 Median Sale Price: $205,000 ⬆️ 24.6%
💵 Average Sale Price: $226,244 ⬆️ 2.1%
⏳ Days on Market: 43 ⬆️ 26.5%
🏷️ List Price Received: 96.5% ⬇️ 2.2%
📦 Homes for Sale: 261 ⬆️ 15.5%
📈 Months of Inventory: 4.7 ⬆️ 11.9%

📅 2026 YEAR-TO-DATE vs. 2025

🏠 New Listings: 590 ⬆️ 14.6%
✍️ Pending Sales: 411 ⬆️ 6.5%
🔑 Closed Sales: 349 ⬆️ 1.7%
💲 Median Sale Price: $180,000 ⬆️ 2.6%
💵 Average Sale Price: $222,078 ⬇️ 0.1%
⏳ Days on Market: 63 ⬆️ 10.5%
🏷️ List Price Received: 95.9% ⬇️ 0.8%

🔎 OUR TAKE — CATTARAUGUS COUNTY

Cattaraugus County is showing clearer signs of a more balanced and price-sensitive market.

July's 24.6% increase in median sale price looks impressive, but the year-to-date median is up a much more modest 2.6%, while the average sale price is essentially unchanged. That tells us not to put too much weight on one month's price movement.

The bigger story is inventory. New listings surged 44.7% in July, homes for sale increased 15.5%, and inventory reached 4.7 months. Buyers have more options and don't necessarily have to jump on the first property they see.

July pending sales fell 20.3%, homes took longer to sell, and sellers received 96.5% of their most recent asking price. Those are signs that buyers are becoming more selective and have greater negotiating leverage.

Bottom line: The market remains active—closed sales are still ahead of last year—but sellers need to be realistic about price and condition. Buyers, meanwhile, are finally seeing more selection and negotiating opportunities.

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🏠 Thinking About Buying or Selling?

County-wide statistics are useful for understanding the overall market, but real estate is local—sometimes right down to the neighborhood, street and individual property.

If you're thinking about selling, or you're simply curious about what your home could realistically sell for in today's market, we'd be happy to provide a complimentary, no-obligation market analysis.

Just reply to this email or give us a call.

Rick & Julia McMahon
Broker Associates & Partners
Real Estate Advantage

📞 Rick: 716-665-8972
📞 Julia: 716-485-3202
📧 rickandjuliarealtors@yahoo.com

Source: July 2026 Monthly Market Reports for Chautauqua and Cattaraugus Counties. Data current as of August 10, 2026.

 

 

 

For More Information On Chautauqua Lake & County Real Estate and Living Visit: chautauqualakehomes.com

West Side Phase II sewers ready to go By Rolland Kidder August 22, 2026 3 min read

 

This past week, a ribbon was cut and the county officially announced that the Sewer Extension Phase II for the West Side of Chautauqua Lake is now ready for hook-ups.

If this had been a church setting, you might have been tempted to shout "Hallelujah!" or "Amen!" but, in any event, it was an important occasion.

I don't think that the general public realizes what it takes to bring such a large project of this type to fruition. A Sewer District expansion requires the approval of the municipalities involved. It also requires the creation of or expansion of sewer district boundaries and all of the legal requirements that entails.

Next, of course, comes financing. The State Comptroller will not approve any of this unless the district is "affordable," and that means that millions of dollars in state and federal assistance were required. The County, to its credit, designated funds from Washington–those generated by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law which was enacted in response to the last economic downturn--to be invested in this important health/environmental improvement project on Chautauqua Lake. Funding from the state's Environmental Facilities Corporation also contributed substantially to the project.

Then, of course, the project had to be designed and engineered, needed to be bid, the bid awarded, various highway and environmental permits granted…all of this before a shovel full of dirt could be moved or a pipeline laid.

The good news in terms of financing is that Phase II construction costs came in at $4 million less than had been projected, thus substantially reducing the annual homeowner fees that will be charged. (The annual cost for sewer service includes operating costs as well as the debt service on the local share needed to complete construction.)

Many worked to bring Phase II to a successful conclusion, but special recognition should be given to County Legislator and Legislative Chairman, Pierre Chagnon, who has been directly involved in getting sewers built around Chautauqua Lake for the past 40-50 years. He has understood, through experience, that something like sewer construction takes a long time and requires a lot of work in order to be completed. Kudos also to all of the other public officials involved and Sewer District employees for their persistence in getting this done.

This new section of sewers (as are most around the lake) is a pressurized system where pumps and pumping stations are required. This means electricity is also needed. Workers at Cummins will be interested to know also that backup generation at the major pump station locations will be powered by Cummins natural gas engines.

The Sewer District is responsible for maintaining, providing the electricity for, and then installing the various pumps and pump grinders which are a part of the system. Landowners are responsible for the connection going from their house to the nearby pump grinder.

It is time now for residents from Stow to Prendergast Point to engage an approved contractor to make these connections from their home to the new sewer.

But, back to the achievement--thanks again to all of the Sewer District personnel, public officials, the contractors and workers on the job who got us to this point. Thanks also from Chautauqua Lake-- it will be a prime beneficiary of this work!

Rolland Kidder is a Stow resident.

 

 

For More Information On Chautauqua Lake & County Real Estate and Living Visit: chautauqualakehomes.com