The North Shore housing market split in March 2026 — it didn't move in one direction. Manhasset posted a 42% year-over-year price gain driven partly by doubled sales volume and mix shift, while Port Washington delivered the cleanest appreciation signal at 19.6% on comparable volume. Meanwhile, Great Neck, Glen Cove, East Hills, Roslyn Heights, and Sea Cliff posted declines of varying degrees. Across all 22 tracked communities, 72 single-family homes closed, with just four towns accounting for roughly two-thirds of all activity.
By Eric Berman | May 20, 2026
If someone tells you "the North Shore market is up" or "the North Shore market is down" right now, they're not looking at the data. The March 2026 numbers tell a more complicated — and more useful — story.
Some towns posted double-digit year-over-year price gains. Others posted double-digit declines. Same region, same month, same buyer pool. Completely different outcomes. And the gap between the top and the bottom widened this month.
That's the real story — not a single headline number, but a market that's behaving differently depending on exactly where you are. Here's how all 22 North Shore communities performed in March 2026, what the numbers actually mean, and what you should take away if you own a home in this area.
The Big Picture: 72 Sales Across 22 Towns
March 2026 produced 72 single-family closings across the 22 North Shore communities tracked monthly. That's a manageable number — and it's spread thin. Most towns recorded fewer than five sales. Some had just one or two.
Here's what matters: four towns — Manhasset, Great Neck, Port Washington, and Glen Cove — accounted for roughly two-thirds of all March activity. That means the bulk of the data is concentrated in a handful of places, and the rest of the North Shore is working with sample sizes too small to draw confident conclusions from. (Watch Eric break this down at 1:30)
This is the single most important thing to understand about monthly real estate data in small markets. When a town has three or five sales in a month, one unusually expensive or unusually cheap house can swing the average dramatically. That doesn't mean values moved — it means the mix changed.
The Towns That Led — and What the Numbers Actually Mean
Manhasset grabbed the headline: 11 single-family closings at an average sale price of $2.44 million, up from $1.71 million last March. That's a 42% year-over-year jump. Sounds massive — and it is. But the context matters.
Last March, Manhasset had just five closings. This March, it had 11. When volume more than doubles, the mix of houses changes. The buyers who showed up in Manhasset this month wrote checks that averaged over $2.5 million in under 42 days on market. Whether you call that appreciation, mix shift, or a demand surge, the checks are getting bigger. (Watch the full Manhasset breakdown at 4:30)
Port Washington delivered the cleanest signal on the North Shore this month. Fifteen closings at an average of $1.57 million, up from $1.31 million last March — a 19.6% gain. And here's why this one stands out: last March also had comparable volume. When both years have similar numbers of sales, the year-over-year comparison is more reliable. Port Washington's gain looks like real appreciation, not just a shift in what happened to sell. The 22-day average days on market was the fastest on the entire North Shore. (Watch the Port Washington analysis at 8:30)
Old Westbury posted four single-family sales with a modest year-over-year gain. At this price tier — we're talking the estate belt — absorption windows of 68 to 87 days are normal. The luxury market moves at its own pace, and four sales in a month is actually a reasonable clip for Old Westbury.
The Towns That Pulled Back — and Why Context Matters
Great Neck recorded 13 closings at an average of about $1.85 million with 55 days on market. Year-over-year, that average came in roughly 5% lower than last March. But volume also dropped from 22 to 13 sales. Great Neck is a big, diverse market — the village, the peninsula, Kings Point, the Great Neck Estates versus Saddle Rock. These are really different submarkets rolled under one name. A 5% shift alongside a volume drop isn't alarming — it's noise. (Watch the Great Neck breakdown at 7:00)
Glen Cove was the sub-$1M story this month — more affordable price points relative to the rest of the North Shore, but still showing some year-over-year softening.
East Hills landed right in the middle. If you asked for a single town that represents the center of gravity of the North Shore market this month — not the highest, not the lowest — East Hills is it.
Roslyn Heights posted five sales at about $1.035 million and 45 days on market. Year-over-year, the average sale price dropped roughly 27%. That looks dramatic, but the volume was identical — five sales in both years. The mix of what closed was different enough to move the average. It's not a clear signal of falling values, but it's worth watching if you own in Roslyn Heights.
Roslyn had just three sales at about $1.8 million with a fast 28-day absorption. Small sample, but fast movement.
If you're trying to figure out what your North Shore home is actually worth in today's market — not a Zestimate, not a regional average — Eric Berman and his team at Compass Greater NY track all 22 communities monthly and can walk you through exactly what the data means for your specific property. Reach out at eric@ericbermanre.com, call 917-225-8596, or visit theericbermanteam.com.
Why Single-Sale Towns Don't Tell You Anything
Several North Shore villages recorded just one or two sales in March. When that happens, you don't have a market trend — you have an anecdote. One high sale in a one-sale town can make it look like prices doubled. One estate sale or distressed property can make it look like values cratered.
The takeaway is straightforward: don't price your home based on what one house did in a one-sale month. The cleanest data comes from towns with enough volume in both the current and prior year to make the comparison meaningful. That's why Port Washington's numbers carry more weight than most of the North Shore this month.
If you're thinking about selling your Long Island home, understanding what the comps actually say — versus what a single month's average suggests — is the difference between pricing correctly and chasing a number that doesn't reflect reality.
What North Shore Homeowners Should Take Away
Here's the honest summary. (Watch Eric's full takeaway at 15:12)
The North Shore didn't move in one direction in March. Manhasset was up big. Port Washington was up meaningfully. Old Westbury was up modestly. Great Neck, Glen Cove, East Hills, Roslyn Heights, and Sea Cliff were down to varying degrees and for varying reasons.
Year-over-year numbers need context. When a town's volume jumps or drops significantly, the mix of houses changes, and the average moves for reasons that have nothing to do with your home's actual value. The cleanest signals come from towns where both years had comparable volume. That's why Port Washington's 19% gain is a more reliable appreciation indicator than Manhasset's 42%.
Small-sample towns are unreliable benchmarks. If your town had one or two sales this month, that number doesn't tell you what your home is worth. You need a broader comp set — adjacent towns, similar price points, similar property types — to get a real read.
And here's the bigger story nobody talks about: the North Shore isn't one market. It's 22 micro-markets that share a geography but behave independently. What happened in Manhasset this month has almost nothing to do with what happened in Glen Cove. If you own on the North Shore, the macro headlines won't help you — you need someone tracking your specific town, month by month, with enough context to separate signal from noise.
That's exactly what Eric Berman and The Eric Berman Team at Compass do every month for homeowners across the North Shore and greater Long Island. If you want a detailed breakdown for your town — or you're thinking about making a move and want to know where the market actually stands — reach out at eric@ericbermanre.com, call 917-225-8596, or visit theericbermanteam.com.
About Eric Berman
Eric Berman is a top 1% REALTOR® with Compass Greater NY, helping buyers and sellers across Queens and Long Island navigate the market with clarity and confidence. Known for his local expertise and solutions-driven approach, he leads a full-service team based in Manhasset and delivers a high-touch, concierge-level experience from start to finish. To connect with Eric, visit theericbermanteam.com, email eric@ericbermanre.com, or call 917-225-8596.
