Manhattan Residential Market Indicates High Sales Volume, Declining Inventory, Rising Prices and Shorter Time on Market - Continued Strong Market Momentum against National Real Estate Trends

       By: Prudential Douglas Elliman
Posted: 2007-07-03 10:21:09
The just-released Second Quarter 2007 Prudential Douglas Elliman Manhattan Market Overview reports that the Manhattan residential real estate market continues to be characterized by falling inventory, rising prices and a record number of sales in contrast to the national housing market.

"All of the stars are aligned in perfect position for the Manhattan real estate market," says Dottie Herman, President and CEO, Prudential Douglas Elliman. "Interest rates are good, job creation is strong, we've had great leadership and this is one of the safest and most vibrant cities in the world. Residential real estate in Manhattan continues to be a strong investment for national and international buyers."

The number of sales increased 104% this quarter to 3,939 units as compared to the 1,934 units sold in the prior year quarter. Highlights from the 2nd Quarter Prudential Douglas Elliman Manhattan Market Overview report include:

-- Listing inventory dropped 31.5% to 5,237 units from the prior year quarter total of 7,640 units, which had been the highest level recorded in more than ten years.

-- Days on market were 117 days this quarter, 4 weeks faster than the same period last year.

-- Listing discount was 2.2%, down from 3.5% during the same period last year.

-- The median sales price increased 1.7% to a record $895,000 over the prior year quarter result of $880,000 (7.2% above prior quarter result of $835,000).

-- The average price per square foot increased 5.2% to a record $1,139 over the prior year quarter result of $1,083 (6.4% above the prior quarter result of $1,070).

-- The average sales price decreased 3.8% to $1,333,316 over the prior year quarter record result of $1,386,193 (3.3% above the prior quarter result of $1,290,391).

"Price levels across the board were generally up this quarter with the greatest price gains seen in larger apartments, namely 3-bedroom and 4-bedroom units with a 17.6% and 36.2% gain over the same period last year," says Jonathan J. Miller, CRP, President/CEO of Manhattan residential real estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel.

Co-op Market

The median sales price of a co-op this quarter was $695,000, down 3.7% from the prior year quarter but up 3% from the prior quarter. Average price per square foot and average sales price showed similar patterns.

-- Inventory levels for co-ops fell 39.6% to 2,481 units as compared to the prior year quarter total of 4,105 units.

Condo Market

The median sales price of a condo this quarter was $1,040,000 this quarter, up 5.1% from last year at this time and up 5% from the prior quarter. Average price per square foot and average sales price showed similar patterns.

-- Inventory levels for condos totaled 2,756 units, down 22% from the prior year quarter total of 3,535 units. New development is estimated to be 34.9% of condo inventory this quarter.
Luxury Market (upper 10% of all co-op and condo sales)

The median sales price of a luxury apartment this quarter was $3,600,000 this quarter, down 10% from the record $4,000,000 median sales price set in the prior year quarter last year at this time but up 5.1% from the prior quarter. Average price per square foot and median sales price also showed declines from the prior year quarter. However since this segment of the market is defined as a percentage of the total market, the declines reflected a wider range of included sales due to the surge in the overall number of sales. The 3-bedroom and 4-bedroom markets are more reflective of the high end market this quarter.

Loft Market (co-op and condo sales)

The median sales price of a loft apartment this quarter was a record $1,650,000 this quarter, up 10% from last year at this time and up 1.2% from the prior quarter. Average price per square foot and average sales price showed 6.5% and 10% gains respectively from the prior year quarter.

Jonathan J. Miller and Dottie Herman are available for interview on the statistics:

-- The report's author, Jonathan J. Miller, CRP, President/CEO of Manhattan residential real estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel. Miller provides input for the Federal Reserve's Beige Book, and serves on the NYC Mayor's Economic Advisory Panel and the NYC Council Finance Committee Economic Advisory Board. On Matrix [matrix.millersamuel.com], he blogs about the real estate economy.

-- Dottie Herman is President & CEO of Prudential Douglas Elliman, the company that distributes the report. Prudential Douglas Elliman is New York City and Long Island's preeminent residential broker, with nearly 70 offices, over 3,300 real estate agents and a network of national and international affiliates. Herman is frequently quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Crain's, and The New York Post.

Full data tables and analysis are immediately available upon request.

ABOUT THE MANHATTAN MARKET OVERVIEW

The Manhattan Market Overview is New York's first quarterly residential market report, and is developed from the largest and most sophisticated database of transactions in New York. The report was the first to track co-ops by price per square foot, to analyze square footage of all sales, to analyze the market by median sales price, to break out the market by bedrooms (Studio, 1, 2, 3, 4+), to analyze market-wide apartment inventory, to analyze days on market and absorption, to drop price per room as an obsolete market indicator, to break out sales by specific neighborhoods and to analyze the uptown co-op and condo market.
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