NYC Real Estate - September 2023

​Manhattan rents level off and show steadiness 

• Median and net effective median rental prices remained at all-time highs for the fifth time in six months.
• The number of new lease signings fell annually for the second consecutive month.
• Doorman new lease signings were slightly below pre-pandemic levels, while those of non-doorman buildings were substantially lower.
• Luxury listing inventory declined year over year for the third time in four months.

​Average rents are still historically the highest 

• The median Manhattan rent was $4,495 per month in August 2023. This is flat when compared to July but a 3% rise vs. last August. 
•  Average rent increased across all bedroom types. At $3,568, pricing for studios reached a new record high, surpassing $3,500 for the first time. Average studio rent is now 37% higher than the low in August 2020.
•  Midtown East had the highest vacancy rate in August (at 3.36%) while vacancy was lowest in Gramercy (at 1.17%).

​Sales volume is down comparing to Q2 2022

• Median sales price for resale units increased 3.8% comparing to last year and is now $1,090,000. 
• ​The number of closed sales declined 39.4% in comparison to Q2 2022.
• Listing inventory slipped year over year as the number of sales remained sharply below the year-ago boom.
• The market share of cash buyers soared to a record two-thirds of all closings because of fewer purchase mortgage transactions.

​Luxury sales market is slow but prices are up

• Manhattan’s luxury housing market had its slowest week in more than a year, with just 10 contracts signed at $4m+.
• Median sales price expanded annually for the fifth time in six quarters.
• Listing inventory declined year over year for the first time in four quarters.
• ​The market share of bidding wars was the third-highest on record.

​Boutique Brooklyn condos demand is on the rise

• Boutique condominiums, with usually 10 or fewer homes in them, make up almost half of all the new housing supply in NYC. 
• According to Marketproof, projected new boutique Brooklyn developments will grow to make up nearly two-thirds (based on filings).
• ​These boutique buildings are mostly found in Brooklyn, where there are currently 264 of them, with even more on the way. 

​Takeaways

• If you are planning to sell your apartment, now is the best time to list it as we are in the listing season. Price competitively based on the most recent comps and macro historical comps. It is not effective to take into account 2020-2022 period. We don't know what the rates will look like next year. If you wait to sell, chances of getting a better outcome are 50/50. 

• If you are planning to purchase a place but want to wait until mortgage rates drop, it can be a working idea. But the moment rates drop, it is very likely the market will face bidding wars and higher than usual prices. Refinancing can always be an option. With the lack of active inventory, try to search off-market units if you have a clear idea on what you are looking for. 

 

• If you are renting a place, be prepared to have all the necessary documentation when applying for trending units because those are sill facing bidding wars.

 

• If you are a landlord and want to rent out your place, please be aware of unprecedented pricing segmentation. It is important to run the comps in your area and determine what option and terms will work best for your rental (vs listing it at a very high price and then decreasing in increments).  

Please reach out with any questions, comments or ideas. If you would like to know how much your apartment is worth today, reply to this email and we will get you a customized report. ​

​About the author:

Alena Sakovich
Licensed Real Estate Agent
Certified Negotiation Expert
R New York
Mobile: 917.930.9925
Email: [email protected]
@alena_vs