Well better late than never. Here is a list of links to all of the Q1 2009 Manhattan Residential real estate reports and absolutely no surprises. Volume has dropped by more than half and median prices of resales are down 20% or more But don’t take my word for it, read for yourself:
- Prudential Douglas Elliman Report
- The Corcoran Report
- The Halstead Report
- The Brown Harris Stevens Report
I have also included some links to commentary on these reports of which the very best in my opinion comes from my colleague and friend Noah Rosenblatt at UrbanDigs. Check out the way the press just eats this stuff up:
- Apartments Sell for Less if They Are Sold at All (New York Times)
- Manhattan Real-Estate Market Skids as Sales Slump (Wall Street Journal)
And there is plenty more if you check out:
And lastly, check out Noah’s commentary on how the media’s portrayal of the "market falling off a cliff" couldn’t be more inaccurate as the decline started as early as late 2007:
- Media Begins Manhattan ‘Plunge’ Effect (UrbanDigs)
Noah and I have been discussing with each other and in the open forum of one another’s blogs that it would likely be 1Q 2009 before we would see hard number evidence of what many of us knew was happening since at least summer 2008.
Now for a bit of my own commentary:
- First of all, although the press would have you believe that the market has come to a complete stand still, it has not.
- Volume pales in comparison to year’s past but buying and selling of Manhattan real estate continues. (We have 6 props in contract and are off to a better start than 2008).
- To sell a home in this market, you must price well to grant buyer’s perceived value.
- Agents who have no experience with soft markets are pulling their hair out in frustration over the inability to get a deal done.
- More agents will leave the industry over the coming months and years as the "easy money" of the past decade is no more.
- Prices will likely soften some more before they stabilize which is why sellers need to be ahead of the curve. Most whom I speak with understand this and are pricing accordingly. That said, no deal is easy these days as buyers continue to be anxious and patient.
And finally to steal a line from Noah’s post:
Savvy buyers will be called ‘vultures’ and ‘bottom fishers’ for expecting a deal, and many will fail to see that this is simply a market where buyer and seller are simply not on the same page. Its tough on everyone involved in the transaction – the buyer that wants the deal, the seller that wants their price, and the broker that wants their commission.
I would only add that "vulture" and "bottom fisher" no longer have a negative connotation but may instead indicate what the "market value" is for a specific home.
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