Where's the Late-August Market Slowdown?
We received an email from a broker who’s wondering if other people are seeing the market do a late-August, post-subprime-crisis freeze. Cuz she’s not: We have seen tons and tons of people coming out to new listings that we’ve had and lots of bids coming in. It’s actually quite shocking considering it is the end…
We received an email from a broker who’s wondering if other people are seeing the market do a late-August, post-subprime-crisis freeze. Cuz she’s not:
We have seen tons and tons of people coming out to new listings that we’ve had and lots of bids coming in. It’s actually quite shocking considering it
is the end of August after all. But maybe things will slow down when more comes on the market in the fall. Although in past years I recall the fall starting slowly in terms of new listings because lots of people get busy getting their kids settled in school, there’s the Jewish holidays, Columbus Day people go away, and all that. So we’ll see.
Not everything’s humming along though. The broker, who does most of her business in Park Slope and Fort Greene, notes that resales of older places seem to be doing much better than new developments. Meanwhile, a reader who’s been actively in the market for a townhouse wrote us yesterday lamenting the lack of decent product on the market and asking whether we thought the situation would change. Heck if we know. Any of your brokers out there have a sense of the post-Labor Day pipeline?
I don’t claim to know a whole lot about real estate, but I’ve been living in Cobble Hill (renting) for about 3 years and have been looking to buy a place here or in one of the adjacent neighborhoods (Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill or Park Slope) for the last 6 months or so. I’m willing to spend $2.5-$3.25mm and am fortunate that I’m not reliant on the mortgage markets to complete a transaction.
Should be easy in a buyer’s market, no? There is NOTHING available. Really. My wife and I have looked at a several brownstones that look like they are about to fall down and some condos that are insanely overpriced.
I read threads like this one constantly looking to make sense of this situation, although they only seem to make me more confused as to what’s going on. Do you think sellers are holding back because they think they can’t get a good price? Does anyone have a home they want to sell me? 🙂
Park Slope has become one of the nicest neighborhoods in all of the 5 boroughs. We no longer rely on people wanting to come gentrify it. We are now seeing people who are successfull and want to enjoy the fruits of their labor by living in a beautiful, eco-friendly, urban environment while being in close proximity to Manhattan. While it may not be as edgy or “hip” as it once was, it has become a stunning enclave and a blue chip neighborhood, not unlike Georgetown. Park Slope is the neighborhood that all others have tried to emulate besides Brooklyn Heights. People who like to bash it are either jealous, or simply like to say they hate beautiful things out of spite. Say what you will about the people (I don’t like ALL people in ANY neighborhood) but the physical beauty of Park Slope, Prospect Park, the architecture, shops and restaurants make this neighborhood a top choice for many people.
having lived in old and new housing and even renovated old housing, i will absolutely say that you need deep pockets to tackle a brownstone especially in park slope. the flooding issue sucks and people are constantly battling it. old houses that you have not personally renovated will have tons of problems that alot of people just don’t understand esp. if they were renters or had owned a an apt.
think that p slope and other areas have had people flocking there who were pretty clueless about the hoods even a couple of years ago.
if you want to make money, look for neighborhoods that have an edge that can really grow and get in with a cheap psf price.
if you can hold out and you want to live there, you will make money in the 5-10 year outlook.
one additional problem that doesn’t seem to get much play, is that people have been taking out home equity loans, which will no longer be as attractive and easy to get, and paying down high interest credit cards etc with them. The pretty sudden drying up of this pool will have a huge impact on how much people spend, and this will impact the economy…it’s all connected, and not a political plot, 11:17.
while I agree that prices may fall the improved services and infrastructure in neighborhoods like PH, CH, FG will prevent the prices from falling back to 1990 prices. These are better places to live and will compete with Manhattan and other ‘hoods provided there is no return to higher crime rates or successful terrorist attack, etc.
I was just saying today that brokers must be lying like mad to convince people that the markets are just fine. Yes, the inability to find jumbo mortgages might not affect everyone — but I sincerely doubt that brokerages are going to be able to continue to charge outrageous prices on places that sold for a fraction of their current prices less than five years ago. Let’s hope some brokers wake up and start being honest for a change.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/business/20070830_Credit_crunch_now_reaching_upscale_homes.html
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, many folks here are overstating the “sub-prime” meltdown. They are gleefully waiting for one in the sad hope of telling everyone, told you so, na na. Only problem is, the market realities will not cooperate. Wall street has already factored in the sup-prime fall out. Sub-prime mortgages make up a small fraction of the entire housing market which in turn makes up a fraction of our larger economy. Which, unfortunately for the naysayers, is doing quite well. GDP continues to increase and even had a respectable percentage gain this past quarter. I know, I know, it’s all a house of cards.lol. Again they come out of their caves to tell us, like prophets awaiting the sign from up above only to be constantly pooped on by a high flying seagull.
No my friends, what you see here is the result of politically based negativity which is fed to many who are of the liberal persuasion here, by an already outed major media. Alas, even the major media cannot deny 5 years of economic growth. Thus the continued resentment by many who pop in to chime in on how the housing market will fail….it must fail…I know it will….I can just sense it…
Time will tell indeed.
I bought a brownstone in Brooklyn eight years ago or so – it seemed very expensive at the time. But it seems to have risen steadily in value – heck, it’s the best investment I ever made by a factor of a hundred. Sure, low interest rates helped. But you can’t discount the fact that Brooklyn has become a fashionable place to live – great properties, fabulous streets, outstanding transportation, close proximity to Manhattan. You couldn’t afford the workmanship and materials that went into a lot of these brownstones in a contemporary structure. And you get space you simply can’t get in Manhattan. If you believe the predictions that a millon or more people will move into the city in the next decade (I’m not sure I do, by the way) – you see where these properties have a good chance of appreciating. Maybe not the nutty way it’s gone the last three years – but over time. Brooklyn is really a great place to live – better, in a lot of ways, than Manhattan.
6:54, it probably would increase in value given the scarcity of land in nyc.