Manhattan real estate sales fell 38% in the first quarter, as buyers and sellers battled over prices and mortgage rates remained volatile, according to new reports.
Total sales volume fell to $4.4 billion in the quarter, with 2,242 apartments and townhouses sold, compared to 2,546 sales in the first quarter of 2022, according to a report from Douglas Elliman and Miller Samuel. The average sales price fell 5% to $1.95 million and the median sales price fell 10% to $1.075 million, according to the report.
The drop in sales and prices follows a 29% decline in the fourth quarter, and suggests that the nation’s largest real estate market is correcting after a post-pandemic boom in prices and demand. The big question for brokers, buyers and sellers is where the new bottom will be in Manhattan.
The biggest challenge for deals is the wide gap between buyer and seller price expectations. Relatively low levels of inventory, or unsold listings, means that buyers still don’t have much choice in Manhattan. There were 6,996 homes on the market in the first quarter, slightly lower than the five-year average of around 7,200.
Sellers have trimmed prices, but not enough for today’s bargain-hunting buyers. The average discount from the initial list price to sales price in the first quarter price was 7%, up from 5% in the fourth quarter.
Bidding and interest have remained especially strong at the high end. The share of luxury sales — or deals in the top 10% of the market by price — that resulted in bidding wars rose to a record high of over 11% in the quarter, At the high end of the market, three-quarters of all sales over $5 million were all cash.
Buyers still fear overpaying in the face of a potential recession, volatile stock market and banking crisis. Because New York City is home to so many buyers and sellers tied to finance, the performance of the stock market could also shape Manhattan’s housing market this spring and summer.
