Off-Market Luxury Deal in Sharon, CT, Highlights Tight Inventory and Quiet Transactions at the Top
A $5.75 million off-market sale in Sharon, Connecticut, illustrates how high-end buyers and sellers are increasingly turning to private deals due to limited inventory and strong demand in Litchfield County's luxury market.
The luxury real estate market in Litchfield County, Connecticut, is running short on inventory and long on motivated buyers, pushing more high-end transactions away from public listings toward quiet, relationship-driven deals. A recent off-market sale in Sharon, Connecticut, illustrates exactly how this is playing out at the top of the market.
The property at 338 Calkinstown Road, a custom-built Federal Georgian estate on 35 acres, sold for $5,750,000 without ever being publicly listed. Bill Melnick and Elyse Harney Morris of Elyse Harney Real Estate represented the transaction, approaching the seller on behalf of a buyer whose needs could not be met by what was currently on the market.
“We knew what the buyer needed, and it simply was not available,” Melnick said. “So we approached the seller directly and asked if they were open to a private sale. They were, and from there it came together.”
For buyers and sellers operating above $3 million in markets like Litchfield County, a private sale is often the preferred outcome. Sellers avoid the disruption of showings, open houses, and public price history. Buyers avoid competing offers and the risk of losing a property. The Calkinstown Road property had originally been sold in March 2020, before COVID pricing had taken hold. The sellers entered that transaction without the benefit of what was about to become a 30 percent run-up in county values. When approached about selling again, they were well positioned to capitalize on the property’s appreciation.
“Sellers who agree to a private sale want to know it is worth their while,” Melnick said. “The price has to be fair, the process has to be easy, and they need confidence that the buyer is serious. When all of that lines up, it can actually be a better outcome than going to market.”
The house itself is the kind of property that sells the moment the right buyer sees it. Built in 2019 by Robert Fish, a local builder known for quality, it features hand-carved fireplace mantles, antique wood library paneling, a slate roof, and copper gutters. Five wood-burning fireplaces, 6,280 square feet, five en-suite bedrooms, and a chef’s kitchen give it the scale to function as a full-time home. The 35-acre setting includes a heated gunite pool, bluestone patio, and professional landscaping. The property borders one of the highest-recorded sales in Litchfield County history, a $10 million transaction on an adjacent parcel, also built by Fish.
Litchfield County is in an unusual moment. Transaction volume has moderated from its pandemic peak, but dollar volume is holding or increasing, driven by movement at the top of the market. Cash buyers, many from finance and technology in New York City, are active in the $3 million and above tier, making mortgage rate headlines largely irrelevant. Off-market activity tends to increase when inventory is thin and buyers are serious. Both conditions are present in Sharon and surrounding towns. Agents with deep community relationships are facilitating these transactions, built on trust and local knowledge rather than MLS access.
For sellers considering a move but reluctant to go through a full public listing process, the current environment may be worth a conversation. The right buyer may already exist in someone’s network, and the transaction may be simpler, faster, and more private than anticipated.