Average Manhattan Apartment Now Over $1.3 million
Posted 05/Jul/2007 00:08:00 by Gromco in Trends in Real Estate, Manhattan, Brooklyn

Preliminary data indicate that the the average Manhattan apartment's sale in the second quarter (April through June) climbed to more than $1.3 million, a record-high.

Although averages are notoriously unreliable as market indicators (a relatively small number of high-price deals can easily skew them), the median sales price in Manhattan also hit a record: it rose 1.7% to a record $895,000, according to the Prudential Douglas Elliman Manhattan market overview report released Tuesday.

As for trends, co-ops seemed to be heading down which was more than compensated for by the upward movement of condo prices (according to figures from Brown Harris Stevens quoted by the NY Times, buyers paid an average of $1.49 million for a condominium, compared with $1.13 million for a co-op)

Also, while Manhattan growth was robust, a report from the Corcoran Group said that median prices for condos and co-ops in Brooklyn fell 1%. (The NY Times quotes the figure as 4%).

Clearly, part of the trend is that foreign buyers are increasingly active on the New York Market. The NY Times piece quotes Hall Willkie, the president of Brown Harris Stevens as saying that foreign buyers, especially Russians, have been snapping up sprawling multimillion-dollar condominiums.

 

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By Nicholas Yulico
TheStreet.com Staff Reporter
7/3/2007 12:00 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by Nicholas Yulico

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The New York City housing market continues to perform well, in stark contrast to the ongoing real estate woes nationally.

The Manhattan residential real estate market saw falling inventories, rising prices and a record number of sales in the second quarter, according to reports from major brokerage firms.

The number of condo and co-op sales doubled from a year earlier to 3,939 units, while the number of units on the market dropped 32% to 5,237, according to the Prudential Douglas Elliman Manhattan market overview report released Tuesday. The median sales price rose 1.7% to a record $895,000.

"Manhattan is really a contrarian market," says Jonathan Miller, president of appraisal firm Miller Samuel, which helps prepare the report. "The key ingredients of pricing, inventory and level of sales are moving in an opposite direction as the national market."

In contrast, the national market is facing a big supply of homes on the market and falling prices.

There are many reasons for the New York City strength. For one, the local economy remains strong, as measured by low unemployment, a city surplus and record bonuses on Wall Street.

In addition, mortgage rates have remained relatively low, and the weak dollar is attracting foreign buyers to the city, Miller says.

One of the biggest surprises is the shop drop in inventories. Condo inventory is now down 22% since peaking in the second quarter of last year. Co-op inventory has fallen 40% since then.

A report from rival brokerage firm the Corcoran Group said median Manhattan condo and co-op prices in the second quarter rose 23% from a year earlier, while median prices for condos and co-ops in Brooklyn fell 1%.

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