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Gen Y’ers Will Keep Brooklyn Real Estate Going Strong
Here’s some good news for those readers who already own a piece of the Brooklyn pie: There’s likely to be strong demand for your apartment or house for many years to come. When your kids leave for college in 5, 10 or 15 years, the likely buyer of your brownstone will be a member of Generation Y, those now-under-30 young adults currently occupying the lower rungs of the working world. According to a recent post on the Better Cities blog, this generation rejects the suburban lifestyles they were raised in. “Generation Y wants to be more connected and less isolated than previous generations”, writes Nathan Norris. “They manifest this desire in their full-on embrace of social media and their desire to live in places where they can be around others; i.e., the densest, most active, areas of cities.” Gen Y isn’t the only factor driving the secular trend: Others include an aging population, higher energy costs and public school reform. “Just as cities were not completely abandoned in the 20th century, suburbs will not be abandoned in the 21st century,” the article concludes. “But the shift in preferences is clearly underway, and this radical change will manifest itself in the nature of real estate development over the next 20 years.”
Gen Y Causing the Great Migration of the 21st Century [Better Cities]
04/13/2012 9:30 AM
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MNS: New Development Prices Up in 2011
The Local has nicely uploaded the MNS 4th Quarter 2011 New Development Market Report market report to Scribd. Here’s the summary:
In Brooklyn, 2011 has fared better than 2010, with a peak median sales price in the third quarter of $575K, and a strong finish in the fourth quarter with a high median sales price per foot of $622/SF. Year-over-Year Brooklyn New Development Condominium sales price per foot numbers are up 8% ($622/SF this quarter versus $574/SF in 4Q10), and median sales prices are up 15% ($542K this quarter versus $471K in 4Q10).
The report also notes that sales inventory dropped 36% and sales dollar volume was down 35% from the 3rd to 4th quarter. Brooklyn Heights had the highest average price per square foot of $944 in the fourth quarter (driven largely by big sales at One Brooklyn Bridge Park), with The Edge taking that prize among individual developments with a whopping average of $1,142. Prospect Heights saw a big fall in prices, but that was largely due to a temporary pause in marketing at On Prospect Park due to a broker change-over.
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02/09/2012 9:00 AM
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Mortgage Rates Hit Record Lows
From The Wall Street Journal:
Real-estate website Zillow Inc. (Z) said Tuesday its real-time rate on 30-year fixed mortgages fell to a new record low in the last week. Zillow said the 30-year fixed mortgage rate on its Mortgage Marketplace is at 3.66%, down from 3.72% a week earlier. The rate is the lowest since Mortgage Marketplace launched in April 2008, Zillow said. The company said the 30-year fixed mortgage rate peaked at 3.7% on Friday and steadily declined through the weekend, dropping to its current rate Tuesday morning. Erin Lantz, director of Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, said despite strong employment figures on Friday, the rate has remained historically low and has been hovering between 3.65% and 3.7% for the past week. “Although European headlines may drive more volatility in the coming week, we expect rates will stay near this range,” Lantz said.
02/08/2012 10:15 AM
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Is the Housing Bottom Here?
Has the housing market bottomed out? That’s what they’re saying over on the Calculated Risk. Noting that the data shows that new home sales hit a low in mid-2010 and have gone sideways since, the soothsayers at the economics blog predict that housing prices, a metric that hits a lot closer to home for buyers and sellers, will hit a low point next month and rebound from there. The writer cites three reasons for the optimism: (1) the national price-to-rent ratio (historical graph on the jump) is finally back to “normal” levels; (2) there’s been a large decline in listed inventory; (3) housing policy initiatives are likely to lessen the downward pressure of distressed sales. Of course, all real estate is local, so results may vary.
The Housing Bottom is Here [Calculated Risk]
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02/07/2012 10:00 AM
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‘Fragile Stability’ Seen in Fourth Quarter Market
The fourth quarter stats covering house and condo sales in Brooklyn have been released, and they’re showing a “fragile stability” at the close of 2011, according to Jonathan Miller, the president and CEO of appraisal firm Miller Samuel, which prepares the report for Prudential Douglas Elliman. Some of the numbers that jump out:
Prices down across the board: The median sales price was $454,383, which is down 11 percent from Q3 and 4 percent year over year; the average price was $529,640, down 13 percent from the third quarter and 8 percent from the same period in ’10.
Sales volume stronger than last year: There was a 6 percent increase in sales year over year, with 1,558 closings recorded. Still, that represents a 30 percent drop-off from the third quarter.
Brownstone Belt: There were 61 total sales of one- to three-families in Northwest Brooklyn, which is a big drop compared to Q4 2010 (down 25 percent) and Q3 2011 (down 31 percent). Prices were high on the houses that did actually sell, though: The median price was $1,150,000, which is a 16 percent increase year-over-year but a 23 percent decline from the prior quarter.
Co-ops: The total number of sales, 351, represented a 28 percent increase from the same period last year. The median sales price, $265,000, was down 16 percent from $315,000 in Q4 2010.
Condos: The median sales price was $476,580, which is down 8 percent from the same time in 2010. The total number of condo sales, 479, was basically unchanged from fourth quarter 2010.
Here’s more of Miller’s take on the market: “Brooklyn annual sales (all 4 quarters 2011 compared to 2010) are up 13.3% year over year. Big shift in mix at the end of the year as lower priced co-op sales responded to drop to record mortgage rate levels. Considering the weak economic conditions in the region, the market fared well. I call it fragile stability since general economic conditions remain somewhat uncertain.”
4Q11 Brooklyn Market Report [Elliman]
01/19/2012 9:00 AM
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Buying a Better Deal Than Renting in Most Cities
From an interesting article from CNNMoney today…
According to real estate web site Trulia, buying was cheaper than renting in 74% of the country’s 50 largest cities in July. In just 12% of the cities, including New York, Seattle and San Francisco, renting was cheaper. In the remaining 14% of cities, renting was less expensive but close to the cost of buying. In addition to a continuing decline in home prices, rock-bottom interest rates have added a lot of weight to the buy side of the scale. The overnight average rate for a 30-year fixed was just 4.19% on Monday, according to Bankrate.com. A 15-year fixed averaged just 3.43%. Add in the tax perks of home ownership and for those who can afford it (and who can actually qualify for a loan), it certainly is a buyer’s market.
Wish they’d break out Brooklyn from the rest of the city in these studies!
08/16/2011 10:12 AM
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New Townhouse Listings Slow to a Crawl
We know it’s summer and everything but the pipeline of new townhouse listings seems to have slowed to a crawl that feels more extreme than even the season can account for. Check out Corcoran’s Newest Listings Page: Only two of the 50 or so properties are townhouses, and they’re both in Park Slope. Over at Brown Harris Stevens, just three townhouses (only one of which is a classic beauty) have been listed in the last thirty days. And a look at StreetEasy’s list of townhouses from the last 30 days reveals only six houses in Brownstone neighborhoods priced over $1,500,000. Slim pickings! What’s going on? Can any brokers out there comment on how this is impacting the buy-side right now? What are your clients thinking?
07/20/2011 10:00 AM
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New York Still Faring Better Than Most Cities
We all know that real estate prices in New York City held up for longer and didn’t fall quite as far as they did in some other places around the country; and we know that the local market has some unique dynamics (co-op boards, landmarking, etc.) that serve to limit the downside in some of the more desirable neighborhoods in town. Still, it doesn’t hurt to check in with how the national market is doing. According to this graphic from The New York Times (compiled with data from the Case-Shiller Index), the 20-city index is hovering right around where it was back in May of 2003. Closer to home, the New York City (whose index includes the entire Metropolitan area) is one of only four cities that is holding at 2004 levels.
For Home Prices, It’s Back to at Least 2004 [NY Times]
07/05/2011 10:02 AM
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Elliman: Prices Up, Sales Down in 4th Quarter
Rounding out this morning’s three brokerage firm market reports is one from Prudential Douglas Elliman, the results of which are relatively consistent with the data revealed by Corcoran. The good news from Elliman is that median prices were up 6.2% over the prior year quarter (though they slipped 2.2% versus the third quarter); similarly, average sales prices increased 15.8% year-over-year and declined 1.9% from the prior quarter. Sales volume declined rather dramatically: The number of sales fell 29.9% to 1,468 in the prior year quarter and fell 21.9% in the third quarter; Elliman (or rather Miller Samuel, which prepared the report) attributes the big dip to the expiration of the Federal tax credit and a lack of fresh inventory. Particularly notable: Prices in Northwest Brooklyn rose by double-digit percentages year-over year while those in East Brooklyn declined by almost ten percent. Click here to see the entire report.
01/20/2011 9:02 AM
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Corcoran’s 4Q Data Sending Mixed Messages
Corcoran has released its 4th quarter market report for Brooklyn and it’s a bit of a mixed bag. There’s lots to comb through, but here’s how Corcoran’s head honcho in Brooklyn distilled the data:
The residential real estate market in Brooklyn proved to have a very strong quarter. The typical seasonal dip in sales at the end of the year did not occur. Not only were sales even with Third Quarter 2010, sales were much stronger compared to a year ago. Pricing was lower than both last year and last quarter, but this was due to a surge of sales in the one-bedroom market particularly in new development properties. The median price of a Brooklyn apartment that closed during Fourth Quarter 2010 was $410,670, a 3% decrease from a year ago and an 11% decrease from Third Quarter 2010. Average price per square foot, at $549, was down 6% from a year ago but held even with last quarter. New development sales accounted for roughly 41% of all apartment transactions, up significantly from both last year and last quarter when they made up 33% of the market. While single-family townhouse median price increased 3% from last quarter, it was down 35% from a year ago. In contrast, multi-family townhouses increased 10% in median price from last quarter and were up 37% from a year ago.
The most interesting numbers to us? The increases in townhouse prices in Brooklyn Heights and BoCoCa. Check them out on the jump. (You can click on either of the images to enlarge.) (more…)
01/20/2011 9:01 AM
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Halstead: Second Half Prices Show Big Uptick
Halstead has just released its market report for Brooklyn residential sales in the second half of last year and the numbers for Brownstone Brooklyn are quite impressive. Prices for condos and co-ops rose in all five of the areas that the brokerage firm groups the Brownstone neighborhoods into. Here are the summary reports:
Brooklyn Heights-Carroll Gardens-Cobble Hill-Dumbo-Red Hook
Sales of condos priced over $1 million almost doubled in this market over the past year, pushing the overall average apartment price 18% higher to $830,522. This also helped bring the average condo price per square foot 10% higher over the past year, to $753. Co-op prices averaged $172,523 per room, 5% more than a year ago.
Boerum Hill-Clinton Hill-Fort Greene
A pickup in high-end sales in the Boerum Hill-Clinton Hill-Fort Greene market brought the average price 7% higher from the second half of 2009, to $547,447. The median price, which measures the middle of the market and is not as impacted by high-end activity, fell 4% during this time to $460,000.
Park Slope-Prospect Heights
In Park Slope and Prospect Heights, apartment prices averaged $682,095 in the second half of 2010, 12% more than a year ago. The average price per room for co-ops in this area of $153,056 was 8% higher than during 2009′s second half. Condo prices averaged $665 per square foot, up from $625 a year ago.
Bay Ridge-Sunset Park
Apartments in Bay Ridge and Sunset Park sold for an average price of $311,087, 5% more than the second half of 2009. The median price posted a larger increase, rising 10% from $269,000 a year ago to $295,000.
Bedford Stuyvesant-Crown Heights
At $421,591, the average apartment price in Bedford Stuyvesant and Crown Heights was 3% higher than the second half of 2009. The area’s median price of $400,000 was up 2% from a year ago, although down from the first half of 2010.
Alas, Williamsburg and Greenpoint were the only nabes Halstead covers where prices did not show a big improvement: The average apartment price fell slightly from 2009, to $579,316. Condo prices in the area averaged $640 per square foot though, a rise of 3% over a year ago.
01/20/2011 9:00 AM
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Drowning In Data: Market Report Season
It’s market report morning around here. Halstead, Corcoran and Elliman all released their fourth quarter (or, in Halstead’s case, second half) Brooklyn reports. Overall, the news was decent on a year-over-year basis and a little weak versus the third quarter, but the latter trend is typical. As always, results varied by neighborhood, with Brooklyn Heights and surrounding areas turning in the strongest numbers. You can check out all three posts on the links below:
Halstead: Second Half Prices Show Big Uptick
Corcoran’s 4Q Data Sending Mixed Messages
Elliman: Prices Up, Sales Down in 4th Quarter
01/20/2011 9:00 AM
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TerraCRG: Commercial Real Estate Stabilizing
Terra CRG just released its 2010 report on the state of the commercial real estate market in Brooklyn. According to the report, the billion dollars or so in sales is about in line with 2009 number. While you can check out data on retail and multi-family sales here, we were particularly interested in the levels at which developable property was changing hands. Despite cries of oversupply and a handful of high-profile projects going belly up, developers apparently have not lost their appetite for North Brooklyn. Williamsburg had the highest number of sales (8) and the highest dollar volume ($20,597,593). As the chart above shows, Williamsburg and Greenpoint also put up the highest numbers on a price-per-buildable-square-foot basis. Interesting.
01/19/2011 8:59 AM
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Lots of Brooklyn in The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times had plenty of Brooklyn-related content this week. First up was a feature about one couple’s renovation of a three-story frame house in Williamsburg.
The couple spent more than $200,000 on a gut renovation that included opening up the warren of tiny rooms to create an inviting layout. They ripped off multiple layers of wallpaper — It was like we were seeing the history of wallpaper, Ms. Eisenman said — and pulled up floorboards to reveal strange, ancient-looking plants. When they dug out the earth in the backyard, they discovered fragments of what looked like old Dutch pottery.
Next up: The story of an art teacher who originally bought a two-bedroom co-op in Ditmas Park back on 2006 only to find that is was, well, a little boring and that she was spending all her time in Park Slope anyway. So she pulled the plug on her old place and bought a smaller apartment on Underhill Avenue in Prospect Heights instead. “I came to realize that what’s outside of my apartment was just as important as the space inside,” she said.
And finally the meatiest of the three pieces: A story about the challenges facing the high end of the Brooklyn real estate market. Back in the glory days of 2006 and 2007, when it was hard to find a townhouse south of 96th Street for less than $10 million, a $5 million house in Brooklyn Heights or Park Slope might have looked like a relative bargain, argues the article. Now, however, with Manhattan prices considerably off their highs, the top houses in Brooklyn—like 281 Henry Street, above—are having a tougher time. And, perhaps as a result, fewer of them are coming to market.
01/18/2011 9:00 AM
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Corco: More Listings, More Absorption
Corcoran just sent out to its brokers and clients some fairly bullish market data about the Brooklyn market. As the accompanying charts show, the number of co-op and condo listings on the market has roughly doubled in the past year while the number of absorbed listings (which presumably means sold listings) rose 26 percent between November 2009 and November 2010. Sales prices appear to have remained fairly steady, except for studios, which rose almost 20 percent on a price-per-square-foot basis. Here’s some unofficial commentary about the North Brooklyn segment of the market from one broker that was forwarded to us: “We’ve seen inventory in Williamsburg begin to show signs of drying up… especially as many new projects which buyers hoped would be for sale have opened up as rentals. The majority of dead construction sites are now showing signs of life, and most are intended to be rentals…leading us to believe that once waterfront properties (EDGE, Northside Piers) sell out, there will be little left to buy.”
12/17/2010 10:00 AM
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Brooklyn Foreclosures Fell in November
The number of scheduled Brooklyn foreclosures fell by 50 percent last month, but was still 30 percent higher than a year earlier, according to data from Property Shark. The drop–which was seen in every borough–was not unexpected given the foreclosure freeze at banks in the wake of the disclosure of widespread paperwork problems. As the chart on the jump shows, Queens continues to have far more cases of foreclosure than any other borough. (more…)
12/14/2010 9:30 AM
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Brooklyn Top Borough for Stalled Developments
The New York Building Congress said yesterday that there are still nearly 700 stalled building projects in New York City. And guess where nearly half of those stalled project are located? Yep, Brooklyn. Queens was runner-up with almost a quarter; about two-thirds of the stalled projects are residential. According to Reuters, which was carried the report, this data suggests that “construction is lagging the broader economy in recovering from the recession.” Makes sense given the general state of paralysis that most bank lending departments are in.
NYC Construction Industry Recovery Lagging [Reuters]
12/01/2010 9:16 AM
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Whither The Market in 2011?
The Times tried its best this weekend to look into the housing crystal ball, talking to a handful of real estate world bold-face names. Corcoran chief Pam Liebman thinks the forecast hinges on payouts at the banks. If the bonuses are big as we go into 2011, we’ll have the wind behind us. If the bonuses are down, the wind is at our face and it’s a tougher climb. Elliman’s Dottie Herman sees the market moving sideways. Brown Harris Stevens’ Hal Wilkie is seeing some encouraging signs of life at the high end of the market. Jonathan Miller, though, isn’t as bullish: the federal tax credit’s expired, mortgage rates are creeping up slightly and unemployment is still high. What do you think?
A Mixed Forecast for the Housing Market [NY Times]
11/08/2010 9:00 AM
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Corco’s 3Q Data Reassuring
If it’s felt like the real estate market’s been doing better recently, that’s because it has, judging by the numbers in Corcoran’s Third Quarter Market Report. (And Elliman’s too.) Here’s how the brokerage’s scribes summed it up:
Brooklyn residential real estate prices remained stable from a year ago but improved from last quarter. The median price of a Brooklyn apartment during Third Quarter 2010 was $472,000 and an average $564 per square foot, an increase of 12% and 3%, respectively, over Second Quarter 2010. Resale transactions gained back market share this quarter that they had lost to the new development sector. Resale price metrics increased from last quarter and were relatively even from a year ago. New development sales accounted for 32% of all apartment transactions this quarter, on par with a year ago but down from 37% in Second Quarter 2010. Single-family townhouse median price declined 44% from last quarter and 53% from Third Quarter 2009. Multi-family townhouses, however, held even with a year ago but increased 26% from Second Quarter 2010.
Odd discrepancy between single- and multi-family townhouses. Must be a sample-size issue…
10/20/2010 9:00 AM
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Elliman Releases 3Q Market Report
The Douglas Elliman 3Q Market Overview for Brooklyn, prepared by Miller Samuel and available here, is out this morning and the numbers are decent. Here are the summary stats:
- Median sales price increased 2% to $485,504 from $476,000 in the prior year quarter and increased 4.9% from $463,000 in the prior quarter.
- Average sales price increased 7.2% to $583,790 from $544,676 in the prior year quarter and increased 7.1% from $545,110 in the prior quarter.
- Number of sales increased 1.7% to 1,879 from 1,847 sales in the prior year quarter but fell 2.7% from 1,931 units in the prior quarter.
- Listing inventory increased 18.4% to 6,630 units from 5,600 units at this time last year.
- Days on market was 109 days, down from 165 days this time last year.
- Listing discount was 5%, down from 5.6% in the prior year quarter.
Of perhaps special interest to readers is the news that the median sales price was $1,265,000, up 11.9% from the prior year quarter result of $1,130,000, and that the number of sales increased 95.2% to 121 units, from 62 units in the same period last year. Not too shabby.
10/15/2010 9:00 AM
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panyl
May 21, 2012 | 02:16 PM