From June 2025 through May 2026, 74% of single-family homes sold above list price in Granby and 88% did so in Simsbury, according to CT Insider. The figures describe competition among buyers making offers on homes that sold; by themselves, they do not show what homes cost, how many households can afford them, or how many buyers lost out.
A dated affordability measure
Granby’s official housing plan offers a different, though older, measure of housing access. The town’s June 2022 Affordable Housing Plan counted 143 units, or 3.28% of the town’s housing stock, as affordable under state criteria. That is not a count of current homes for sale or a measure of any individual buyer’s finances. It also does not provide a comparable Simsbury figure or establish how either town’s share has changed since 2020.
The plan is intended to outline ways Granby could increase affordable housing, but the town’s plan FAQ says its recommendations require further review by town boards before the town decides which to pursue. The plan figure and the recent sale statistics therefore describe different parts of the housing picture, not a direct comparison.
Why homes are drawing competing offers
The reporting points to limited supply as a factor in the fast sales. Simsbury agent Kris Barnett told CT Insider that homes she listed late in the week could be gone by Monday, attributing the pace and price increases to the small number of homes available. The outlet also reported that large areas of protected land in both towns cannot be developed, limiting one potential source of new housing.
UConn real estate professor Jeffrey Cohen told CT Insider that prices in Granby and Simsbury had been relatively flat for decades before rising in 2020 and continuing upward. He connected the Hartford region’s appeal to moves by workers from New York and Boston and to buyers getting more for their money than in those cities. Granby agent Ken Kuhl told the outlet that competition there intensified in 2020 as people moved from cities, including from as far away as California. These are explanations reported by interviewees; the sale percentages alone do not establish why buyers moved or how much each factor contributed.
The recent above-list shares signal a demanding market for buyers in both towns. Granby’s older state-criteria count adds a limited affordability benchmark, but the available figures do not establish a current, like-for-like measure of housing access across Granby and Simsbury.
