The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) presents its findings for New York City’s residential market in its quarterly report. Although the upward trend in prices is unsurprising, readers will be interested in the breakdown, especially regarding condos and co-ops.
For the first quarter, the number of homes sold rose 4% from the prior year to 10,391. Although the average price fell by less than 1%, the mean can be skewed by extremes at either end. It might be more useful to look at the median price, which increased by 2%. We will focus our attention on Manhattan and Brooklyn, the boroughs in which our readership has shown the most interest.
The island of ManhattanThe island of Manhattan
It is somewhat surprising that the total consideration for all residential transactions fell 2.8% from a year ago, to $4,570,995,434. The number of sales also declined, down 5% to 2,996 units. However, this includes condominiums, cooperative units, and 1-3 family dwellings. The latter category might skew results since some could be investment properties, which tend to be more volatile.
Examining condo and co-op data demonstrate the point. The median price rose a sharp 8% to $850,000. Equally impressive, the price per square foot jumped 12%, to $1,152, interestingly, the number of sales fell 4% to 2,950. It is hard to draw conclusions from one quarter. Perhaps there were fewer listings. At any rate, the pricing data do not show a lack of demand from buyers.
Breaking this out further, the median price for condos rose 19% to $1.246 million, while the median sales price per square foot rose 17% to $1,308. The number of units sold dropped 11% to 1,152.
Similarly, prices for co-ops in the borough showed strength in the quarter. The median price and price per square foot both increased by 10% to $675,00 and $960, respectively. However, the number of sales was up, although by just 1%, or 17 units, to 1,798.
Brooklyn is coolBrooklyn is cool
Several areas have become hip, attracting a new generation of urban professionals. This is in contrast to years ago when the borough was the butt of many jokes, and quite a few neighborhoods were symbols of urban decay.
Total consideration rose 6.1% to $1,698,389,242, while the number of sales was essentially flat, at 2,538. The increased interest by homeowners can be seen in the percentage of residential consideration the borough commands.
While Manhattan still grabs the lion’s share, grabbing 54.9%, it is down from 58.2% in the year-ago period.
Meanwhile, Brooklyn residential purchases accounted for 20.4% compared to 19.9%.
Pricing for condos, co-ops, and 1-3 family homes was strong. The median price rose 5% to $525,000, and the price per square foot advanced 8% to $394.
Those purchasing a condo shelled out more. Prices were up 10% to $625,000. Similarly, the price per square foot increased by 9% to $688, although the number of sales dropped by 17% to 470.
Likewise, co-ops prices rose 11% to $311,000, while the price per square foot was 2% higher to $456. Sales activity was also brisker than a year ago, with 567 sales, 9% higher.
Final thoughtsFinal thoughts
The top five neighborhoods in Manhattan terms of the number of sales were the Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Midtown East, Gramercy/Kips Bay, Midtown West. Brooklyn’s residential sales were led by Bedford Stuyvesant, Park Slope, Gravesend/Mapleton, East New York/Spring Creek, and Bushwick/Wyckoff Heights.