This month I continue to be confronted with the following conversations, “ Oh! You’re in real estate? So what’s the market like?”   Not only am I now a living and breathing source of transactional data, market news, and reliable neighborhood recommendations but I wanted to take a moment to outline what exactly is, “going on” since the close of 2016. In trying to understand what's next I'm always tuning into  year's sales trends, development news, and inventory movement to help decipher what property is really worth.

1. BROOKLYN BARGAINS

Any home under $2M in Brooklyn is a steal. You might find several fixer upper opportunities- hint* I’ve been heavily involved with transactions in Crown Heights. Median prices in Brooklyn hit all time high in 2016, so if you haven’t walked the neighborhood lately, definitely spend $2.75 on a one way subway ride out there and see it for yourself.

2. RECORD CONDO PRICING

A $3M sets the bar for a record high average Condo price, because of the new inventory and developments. Roughly 14,500 units were expected to hit the market between 2015 and 2017. By the end of 2017, Manhattan will have 5 years of excess inventory according to The Real Deal.

3. QUEENS RECORD PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT

A new record, $341 price for square foot was set in Queens from the sales of Flushing Commons, a 29,000 square foot lot in Flushing. Queens, unlike Brooklyn, is on the cusp. With 43% of residents owning a home, and over 2.3M people, it’s the second most populated borough behind Brooklyn with very slim inventory. The borough has it’s pockets of traditional homeowners and new boutique developments such as The Lincoln.

4. MILLENNIALS WILL PUSH THE RENTAL MARKET

The Millennial and Generation X cohort – those between the ages of 18-44 – will increase from 116 million to approximately 128 million by 2020. At one point or another, those additional 12 million residents will be renters. More millennials who might not make as much money as their parents, mean more renters. Multi-family housing is a safe bet.  Interesting to note Long Island was #1 in the most multifamily transaction volume year over year, and Westchester was #4 in the nation. Viewpoint Multifamily Report 

5. MANHATTAN TOWNHOUSE 

 Corcoran’s 2016 Manhattan Townhouse Report  surveys sales of single-family and multi-residence townhouses throughout the borough.

  Among its findings:

• Fewer sales. The number of townhouses sold fell by 26% versus 2015.

• Lower prices. After last year’s record-breaking levels, a slower pace at the high end caused prices to cool by 10% in price per square foot.

• Townhouses go for $1M minimum. For the first time, no Manhattan townhouse sold for less than $1 million unless it was a gut renovation.

• Fewer trophy sales. No townhouses sold over the $30 million mark in 2016.

   

   

   

I hope you find this helpful and easy to understand and as always welcome your opinions, feedback, and questions.