An affluent coastal town in lower Fairfield County
Prior to the 1980s, Greenwich was best known as a low-key coastal town, where wealthy New Yorkers bought summer homes and New York-based companies set up suburban office spaces. But after hedge funds began relocating to Greenwich in the ‘80s, attracted by the town’s coastal location just over the Connecticut border and subsequent lower tax rates, Greenwich gained its reputation as the hedge fund capital of the world.
More firms relocated to Greenwich through the 2000s and 2010s, and institutions like AQR Capital, Gramercy Funds Management, Lone Pine Capital Management and ESL Investments continue to be major employers today. Greenwich and New York City’s financial institutions are intricately connected, and many will work in finance and be based at New York-based firms like BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, MetLife and Apollo Asset Management. “People will have to commute down to Manhattan a couple of days a week, or New Yorkers will have to come to Greenwich,” says Jeffrey Jackson, a Realtor with Corcoran Centric Realty who has lived in Greenwich for several decades.
The significant influx of wealth into the area has solidified Greenwich as an affluent, desirable town with a highly rated public school system, multi-million-dollar estates and country clubs with years-long waiting lists. Since homebuyers can find similar homes at much lower prices in the nearby Fairfield County cities of Stamford and Norwalk, there’s a sense that residents strive to be part of Greenwich specifically.
Greenwich is a luxurious coastal city with waterfront living & serene wooded suburbs.
The Greenwich Croquet Club is located in Indian Field's Bruce Park.
A mixture of homes and apartments are available in the southern tip of Downtown Greenwich.
Greenwich Avenue shopping and dining is the heart of Greenwich.
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Luxury homes with high-end prices
Greenwich has neighborhoods that offer distinct atmospheres. Downtown Greenwich is known for its walkability and access to nightlife, while Old Greenwich, Cos Cob, Riverside and Belle Haven are close-knit coastal villages. Back Country Greenwich offers spacious plots of land and a secluded atmosphere, while Byram is the least expensive part of town, with an average home value of $1.2 million. These differences mean residents are often very loyal to their neighborhoods. “I’ll have buyers tell me that they don’t want to be anywhere but Riverside, for example,” Jackson says. The combination of specific preferences and an influx of New Yorkers moving to Connecticut suburbs since 2020 has made for a competitive housing market, where homes often sell quickly for over the asking price.
Greenwich’s strict zoning regulations mean that homes have a uniform ‘New England’ appearance. Colonial Revivals, Cape Cods and cottages with yards featuring white picket fences, hydrangeas and stone walkways can be found throughout town. Though many were built in the early to mid-1900s, nearly every home has been precisely renovated to match the demands of the high-end market.
Fairfield County is ranked the wealthiest county in the state, and housing prices are vastly higher than the state or national median. Greenwich’s median home listing price is $3.2 million, compared to the median Connecticut listing price of $460,000 or the 2024 national median of $430,000. While many Colonial Revivals and Cape Cods are priced between $2 million and $4 million, luxurious estates fluctuate between $14 million and $32 million.
Back Country Greenwich is an affluent neighborhood.
Smith Road homes all feature water access in Belle Haven.
A stunning waterfront home perched along the rocks in Indian Field.
A stand-out home steps from Greenwich Ave in Downtown Greenwich shines in the morning sun.
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Public parks and events alongside exclusive country clubs
Golf and yacht clubs are top of mind when it comes to the recreation and social scene in Greenwich, but similar amenities are available to the public. “My dad always says that living in Greenwich is like living in a country club,” says Megan Epand, a Realtor with Houlihan Lawrence who was born and raised in Greenwich. “You have your beaches, a public golf course, tennis and pickleball courts, and a swimming pool. We even have public marinas, so you don’t have to join a yacht club.” Island Beach, which can only be accessed by a public ferry, and Greenwich Point Beach are both popular spots to lounge on the sandy shore and appreciate views of the Long Island Sound. Bruce Park has playgrounds, walking trails and tennis courts, and Byram Park has a public swimming pool, public marina and boat launch. The town-owned Griffith E. Harris Golf Course is the only non-private course in Greenwich; residents can play 18 holes on the green.
With that said, exclusive, private clubs are a focal point in Greenwich. “I’ve had clients who are only interested in buying on one street so that they can skip the years-long waiting list for a certain club,” Jackson says. Country clubs, such as Greenwich Country Club, Millbrook Club and Fairview Country Club, are invite-only, have long waiting lists, and include initiation fees that go above $100,000. Private yacht clubs, like The Old Greenwich Yacht Club and Riverside Yacht Club, also dot the coast, and have similar costs and waiting lists as country clubs. In the more rural atmosphere of Back Country Greenwich, hiking and birdwatching are popular.
Country clubs are major social scenes, but downtown Greenwich also has a lot of public festivities. Greenwich Avenue is home to independent art galleries and hosts holiday celebrations such as a St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Halloween trick-or-treating. The Greenwich Town Party, a May music festival with inexpensive tickets, is one of the most highly anticipated events. Residents enter a lottery system in the fall, but they won’t find out if they’ve received tickets until a couple of months before the festival.
"The Griff", or Griffith E. Harris Golf Course, is a well maintained gem in Greenwich.
Greenwich residents enjoy the waterfront from their homes and parks like Grass Island.
Bruce Park is a stunning park with various amenities open to the public in Greenwich.
Locals have access to a beautiful beach at Greenwich Point Park in Old Greenwich.
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Highly rated public and private school options in Greenwich
The Greenwich Public School District serves all children in town. Niche gives the district an A-plus rating and ranks it as the seventh-best district in Connecticut. Many neighborhoods, like Riverside, Cos Cob and Glenville, have a namesake elementary school that’s walkable or bikeable for students. In total, the district has 11 elementary schools, which feed into three middle schools and then Greenwich High School. The high school earns an A-plus rating from Niche and has over 350 courses, including 32 Advanced Placement classes.
For parents of school-aged children, the highly rated school system is a significant contributor to their decision to relocate to Greenwich, since most families moving from New York City are used to paying expensive private school tuition. However, Epand says that new residents who were born and raised in Manhattan are often opting for private schools, several of which are now expanding to accommodate the demand. This includes Rye Country Day School, an academy that’s about 4 miles away in Rye, New York. Other popular private schools include the all-girls Greenwich Academy and all-boys Brunswick School; the institutions host combined coeducational courses during high school. All three of these schools have A-plus ratings from Niche.
Cos Cob School has 359 students in grades K-5.
Julian Curtiss Elementary School is located at 180 E Elm Street in Greenwich, CT.
Greenwich High School is a top choice school for students located in Mid Country East.
Eagle Hill School is a top choice school for students located in Greenwich.
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Greenwich Avenue is a renowned shopping and dining corridor
Greenwich Avenue, which locals often call The Avenue, is a luxurious corridor of designer shops, restaurants and bars. “It used to have more retail, but the stores struggled to stay on The Avenue as people moved to online shopping,” Jackson says. In response, the town changed ordinances to allow more restaurants and bars to The Avenue, making downtown a walkable hub where locals can grab a latte at CFCF Coffee in the morning, go to Meli-Melo Creperie for lunch and enjoy an elevated Italian dinner at Terra or American fare at Eastend. The Avenue’s signature high-end stores, like Hermes, Tiffany & Co., Saks Fifth Avenue and Richards still draw designer shoppers. For more affordable retail shopping, residents drive about 6 miles northeast to downtown Stamford, which has stores like Macy’s and Target.
Greenwich Hospital, a teaching hospital that’s part of the Yale-New Haven Health system, is just north of downtown Greenwich.
The Elm Street Oyster House in downtown Greenwich has beautiful al fresco dining.
Terra, a long standing Italian restaurant, will require a reservation on weekends in Greenwich.
Saks Fifth Avenue is located on Greenwich Avenue and a hot spot for local residents.
LoveShackFancy is a female clothing store for infants to adults on Greenwich Ave.
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Commuter trains and interstates keep residents connects to New York City
Interstate 95, U.S. route 1 and State route 15, often called the Merritt Parkway, all run through Greenwich. These highways take drivers to other Fairfield County cities located northeast, like Stamford, Norwalk and Bridgeport. Commuters headed to New York City have a 35-mile drive southwest. Since a vast majority of residents commute to New York City at least some of the time, the area has high traffic volumes; during peak commuting times, it can take an hour and a half to get to Manhattan.
Most commuters opt to take the Metro-North Railroad’s New Haven line since the train goes to Grand Central Terminal in under an hour. “There have been fewer full-time commuters since Covid, but it’s still difficult to get a train station parking pass. People just don’t give those up,” Epand says. Greenwich has four train stations: Cos Cob, Riverside, Old Greenwich and downtown. The Metro-North Railroad’s commuter line runs through the stations every 30 minutes. “People treat the train like the subway. You might live in Cos Cob, take the train one stop over to grab dinner downtown, and then ride it home,” Jackson says. “Parents will start letting their kids ride the train to The Avenue on their own when they’re in middle school.” Additionally, there are CTtransit public bus stops throughout town.
The Westchester Regional Airport in West Harrison, New York, is just outside of Greenwich and offers direct flights to about 22 locations, though some flights are only available seasonally. LaGuardia Airport, which is 28 miles southwest, is the nearest major international airport.
Westchester County Airport is nearby for easy access to and from Belle Haven.
The Greenwich Train Station services North & South community.
The Merritt Parkway runs through the northern end of Greenwich.
Come check out the lovely neighborhood of Cos Cob.
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Planning for a changing climate on the coast
Greenwich experiences all four seasons, though climate change has lengthened the warm and humid summer months. “My kids just swam at the beach with their grandparents in mid-September. We couldn’t do that when I was growing up,” Epand says. Though Greenwich still experiences cold and wet winters, snowfall has decreased over the past 20 years. The changing climate has resulted in increased flooding on the coast and inland; Binney Park and streets in Old Greenwich have flooded several times after heavy rainfall.
According to RiskFactor, properties on the coast are at severe to extreme risk of flooding. In response to drastic weather events and rising sea levels, the town of Greenwich has created the Sustainability and Climate Resiliency Plan, which resolves to create sustainable mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of climate change in the area. Measurable goals and strategies are still in development.
Greenwich crimes rates are lower than national average
Greenwich has a lower crime rate than the state and U.S. averages. According to FBI statistics, in 2023 there were 60 violent crimes and 597 property crimes reported in Greenwich.
Barbara is a seasoned professional with an unwavering passion for real estate. Originating from Rome, she embarked on a successful career as a realtor before making the bold transition to the United States. With a profound understanding of local markets, Barbara quickly established herself as a trusted and respected realtor, renowned for her exceptional service, meticulous attention to detail, and astute negotiation skills.
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