Seeking a Fresh Start in Connecticut: In a House or a Condo?

Frederic Chiu and Jeanine Esposito are known in Westport, Conn., for the elaborate salons they held at their historic residence, known as Beechwood. The couple would create programs of art, music, film and food around appealing themes — New York City in the 1970s, say — and then invite others to immerse themselves in the topic. Mr. Chiu, an internationally acclaimed pianist, often performed for their guests in the large, round music room.

“I’ve been brought to tears multiple times when I’ve heard him perform in that intimate setting,” said Cyd Hamer, a friend who is an agent with William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty. “Even the people who were attending — it was like, ‘Whoa, this is an unbelievable gathering.’”

About a year ago, Ms. Esposito and Mr. Chiu decided it was time to downsize from their 2.6-acre Westport property. The salons had become less frequent during Covid, as the couple began curating events with larger venues. “Now there are a lot of organizations bringing together the arts, so we don’t need to maintain a separate venue,” said Ms. Esposito, 63, a corporate innovations consultant and an artist. Mr. Chiu, 58, also spends about a week every month in Pittsburgh, where he is a professor of piano at Carnegie Mellon University.

They wanted a smaller home, but one with enough space to accommodate a grand piano. Their preference was to live on or near water, which meant they would have to leave Westport, where waterfront housing prices soared into the millions during the pandemic. Their budget was about $1 million.

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The couple started looking in Milford, Conn., a coastal community about 30 minutes northeast on Interstate 95.

“We spent a lot of time looking at and bidding on houses that were right on or near the water,” Ms. Esposito said. But they were always outbid.

“I’m glad,” she said, “because we decided that it was just too far from everything we were doing, and from our contacts and our friends.”

So they called Ms. Hamer and asked her to help them find something south of Westport, in the neighboring city of Norwalk. They wanted to widen their search to include condos, and considered the possibility of buying a place to rent out and having it as a fallback. As they looked, they realized they could potentially reduce their budget to less than $700,000.

Aside from being near the water and having room for a piano, they wanted a place they could age comfortably in, with as few stairs as possible. But could a smaller place check all their boxes? They were going to get as close as they could.

“We are looking at this long term,” Ms. Esposito said. “We don’t really want to move again.”

Among their options:

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