Fairhaven · Downsizing
Downsizing in Fairhaven
Selling the big house and moving into the life you actually want next, at a pace that leaves room for how hard the decision is.
Fairhaven works both ways, and that is unusual
Most towns on this coast are a place people downsize out of. Fairhaven is one of the few that is both.
People here sell the larger family home and stay, because there is somewhere to go. And people from Mattapoisett, Marion and Rochester sell a big house on a big lot and land here, because the entry price is lower and the housing is denser and closer together.
That second group surprises themselves. They arrive looking at Fairhaven as a compromise and discover they can walk to things, which is not something a house on two acres in Rochester ever offered them.
Find out what your Fairhaven home is worth
The town is really several neighborhoods with different answers
Fairhaven is compact but it is not uniform, and the part of town decides most of what you care about:
- The village and the area near the Rogers School and the town hall. The architectural heart of town, older homes, walkable, and closer to daily errands than anywhere else in the area.
- Near Fort Phoenix and the harbor. Water, the beach, and the view across to New Bedford. A short walk changes the price considerably.
- The Sconticut Neck road out toward West Island. A long neck of land with water on both sides and a different character the further out you go.
- North Fairhaven and the areas off Route 6. More mid-century stock, more single-level homes, and the practical answer for a lot of downsizers.
Fairhaven also has more condominium and smaller-home inventory than the towns to the east of it. That is the single most useful fact about this town for someone downsizing.
West Island is its own decision
West Island is beautiful and it is not a casual choice, so I raise it early rather than letting someone fall in love first.
It is out at the end of Sconticut Neck with water on every side, which is the attraction and also the whole list of things to check. Flood zone and elevation, insurance cost and insurance history, wind exposure, how the road behaves in a serious storm, and what a February evening out there is actually like when the summer people have gone. None of those is a reason not to buy. Every one of them is a reason to know before rather than after.
I live on Buzzards Bay myself, so I am not warning you off the water. I am telling you what the water asks for in return.
Selling a Fairhaven house that has been in the family
A lot of Fairhaven sales are a family home of thirty or forty years, and often the sale is being organized by adult children rather than by the person who lived there.
Those sales go wrong in a predictable way. Everyone is busy, nobody wants to be the one pushing, the house sits empty through a winter, and the condition and the price both drift. The fix is unglamorous: decide who is actually making decisions, agree what happens to the contents before the listing rather than during it, and set a date.
When the sale involves an estate or a trust rather than a straightforward move, that has its own process and its own timing, and I have written about how I handle it on the probate and trust sales page.
What to do first
Whichever direction you are going, the first step is the same and it commits you to nothing. Find out what the house is worth, in writing, with the reasoning attached.
If you are selling here, that tells you what you have to work with. If you are moving here from a larger house in a neighboring town, it tells you what the gap looks like, which is usually the number that actually decides whether this happens this year. Ask me and we will start there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there condominiums in Fairhaven?
Yes, and Fairhaven has noticeably more smaller-home and condominium inventory than Mattapoisett, Marion or Rochester. That is the main reason it works as a destination for people downsizing out of a large house in the towns to the east, as well as for people already here who want to stay.
Should I buy on West Island?
Only with your eyes open. It is genuinely lovely and it sits at the end of a neck with water on all sides, so flood zone, elevation, insurance cost and history, wind exposure and how the road behaves in a storm all need checking before you are committed. I live on the water myself and I am not discouraging it. I am saying know what you are taking on.
Is Fairhaven cheaper than Mattapoisett?
Entry prices in Fairhaven generally sit below Mattapoisett, which is why the move from one to the other is common. Both towns move, though, and a comparison that was true last year may not be true now, so ask me for the current picture rather than relying on a figure printed on a website.
Fairhaven
What downsizing looks like in Fairhaven
Remarkable architecture and a working waterfront, in one of the tighter markets on the South Coast.
Fairhaven has a collection of grand public architecture out of all proportion to its size, and a real working harbor across the water from New Bedford. The Millicent Library is the piece people stop the car for.
The housing stock is wide, from antique and Victorian homes near the center to mid-century neighborhoods to waterfront along the shore. Older homes here need a different inspection eye than a 1990s colonial.
The method
How I do it in Fairhaven
Downsizing: keep exploring
Ready to make your move with Susan Gorden Ryan?