Even in the midst of an uncertain, volatile marketplace, luxury real estate in New York City delivers lucrative returns for sellers.
Over the course of the past three years, New York City's luxury housing market has taken buyers and sellers on an unprecedented journey.
It seems quaint now, but prior to the start of the new decade, owners and investors spent the latter half of 2019 navigating newly minted mansion and transfer taxes. A prologue to the uncertainty that was to come. As the calendar flipped, 2020 kicked off with an uneventful and, to be honest, sluggish start to that year's cycle of buying and selling.
Of course, that year's slow opening quarter gave way to the roller coaster of pandemic-era dealmaking—or lack thereof, depending on where you chose to seek out investment. As has been well documented, the city's fortunes fell precipitously. But, as it so often does in the face of insurmountable adversity, New York's real estate market finds itself surging a year and a half later, with prices and sales rising across the city's five boroughs.
Particularly impressive is the city's high-end luxury housing segment. Even now, in the face of inflation and increasing mortgage costs, high-end homes in the Big Apple are a sought-after commodity. For Q2 2022, Manhattan's overall market median price is up 11.3% year-over-year, with discounts running under 5% from the initial list price. In Brooklyn, it's nearing 9%, with even fewer discounts in a consistently hot seller's market. Contract activity is also robust, even as it tapers off from the nearly impossible to replicate final quarter of 2021.
The primary question in the city's post-pandemic marketplace is where sellers continue to make gains and buyers compete for a neighborhood's premier properties. Which communities continue to offer buyers solid investment and sellers sizable, rewarding returns?
Featuring a mix of hot, up-and-coming addresses and timeless properties that always prove popular with big spenders, these NYC neighborhoods are still a seller's dream.
Brooklyn
If you're considering selling a long-held gem from across the East River, it may be a long time before you again encounter a market as seller-friendly as Brooklyn's is now.
● Key 2Q stat for sellers: Brooklyn's second quarter registered sales volume of more than $4.1 billion. That number represents a 19.3% increase over the same time last year and a new, all-time high for the second quarter reporting period.
● Neighborhoods that continue to favor sellers: Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Park Slope, Red Hook, and Williamsburg; any high-end, luxury neighborhood in Brooklyn could make a case as being the hottest selling neighborhood in NYC's luxury condo market.
By almost any metric, Brooklyn and its cachet of trendy neighborhoods (and a few more accustomed to favored market status) stand as New York City's most active real estate market. As a bastion of new development, both buyers and renters are flocking to the area to scoop up units as soon as developers make them available—98 Front Street, Brooklyn Point, and Quay Tower being the latest to curry favor with investors and home seekers.
Though new development is sometimes at odds with a seller's goal of capitalizing on existing inventory, the demand and absence of abundant supply allow space for both listing options to coexist in Brooklyn. Downtown and DUMBO have drawn investment dollars seeking new brand new products. Sellers are reaping the rewards in the borough's most established communities. The extremely livable, longtime local favorite Park Slope and always fashionable Williamsburg are two such examples. The East River districts of Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, and Red Hook have never been more popular, with the latter two boasting some of Brooklyn's, and, indeed, NYC's, most expensive real estate.
Further extolling the virtues of posting a Brooklyn listing now, the demand negates the need for discounts. In fact, borough listings that do spot their buyers a price break do so at an average of 3%. That's the lowest number across the five boroughs, and again, if they're needed at all.
Downtown Manhattan
Including some of New York's priciest homes, its most elegant neighborhoods, and an enviable lifestyle, sellers with patience are regularly rewarded with high-value transactions.
● Key Q2 stat for sellers: Of condos sold in Manhattan during 2Q2022, 35% of those occurred Downtown. Co-op sales Downtown accounted for one-fourth of the borough's total. The average discount of 4% is among the lowest in the city.
● Neighborhoods that continue to favor sellers: Greenwich Village, and West Village for standard luxury sales; East Village and Lower East Side for sellers targeting rental investors.
It's always unwise to bet against New York's hyper-competitive real estate market. Even in downturns or during sluggish seasonal lulls, there's certain to be a submarket where demand far outpaces supply, a record-setting, multi-million dollar sale takes place, or a previously ill-time development sells out ahead of schedule. Nowhere do these scenarios play out more often than in Downtown Manhattan.
Providing the connective tissue between the entertainment and commerce of Midtown and the business and banking central to Lower Manhattan's Financial District, Downtown boasts two of NYC's most expensive communities—Tribeca ($3.5 million median sales price) and SoHo ($3.45 million).
Both price points are well-deserved, though, in Tribeca's case, a seller could wait upwards of five months before seeing the return. In SoHo, the wait, as with the prices, is slightly less. But the real prize for sellers is the more modest luxury of Downtown's other notable neighborhoods—Greenwich Village, West Village, East Village, and Lower East Side. It's here where dealmaking is more prevalent, and sellers earn solid ROI should they position their listings wisely.
Quaint restaurants and shops and easy walkability under thick, green canopies keep Greenwich Village and West Village in the conversation as not just the nicest neighborhoods in NYC but the most livable. The high desirability buoyed seller ambitions throughout 2022, even as surrounding communities experienced slower sales and plateauing prices—you can close transactions in less than 90 days, whereas Manhattan's market average is 135.
Buyers and renters seeking a grittier version of New York's high-end marketplace usually head further east. Young renters yearning for rough around the edges luxury appreciate the area's hardscrabble aesthetic—investors specializing in rental property love that those renters love it, too.
Upper East Side and Upper West Side
These legendary luxury enclaves feature the best examples of NYC's classic opulence and rich recreational lifestyle. For property owners keen on moving assets and picking up consistent, positive returns along the way, there's always a ready group of buyers angling for a piece of traditional New York real estate.
● Key Q2 stat for sellers: Median condo price is up 22% on the Upper East Side and 39% on the Upper West Side, year-over-year. East Side median co-op price increased 26%, the highest in the city.
● Neighborhoods that continue to favor sellers: Both communities have their dedicated devotees, but the Upper West Side's broad appeal and enviable access to NYC's more esteemed Midtown neighborhoods make it a more lucrative playground for sellers.
While it's easy to tout New York's up-and-coming communities, few areas of the city present the romanticized ideal of New York better than the vaunted Upper East and Upper West Side neighborhoods. Separated by Central Park's 840 acres, the two immensely walkable enclaves have long held a prestige that beckons both local buyers and deep pockets from afar.
The Upper East Side is the pair's gilded retreat. Most listings garner plenty of attention, but buyers are willing to pay premiums for a penthouse flat or history-laden brownstone featuring proximity to the multimillion-dollar glitz of Madison Avenue or the priceless treasures found up and down Museum Mile. They also appreciate the lavish, arms-length lifestyle afforded those who buy into the Upper East Side's quiet, tucked-away residences.
If the Upper East Side is the duo's smartly curated gallery, the Upper West Side represents the boisterous, independent art studio. A living canvas unfurled across a nearly two-mile expanse of land with Central Park to the east and the Hudson River to the west, the neighborhood is notable as one of the few NYC neighborhoods that feel like its own autonomous city.
Endlessly walkable and home to world-class cultural institutions like the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Upper West Side is Hollywood's version of New York and, for many others, New York's version of New York. Investment dollars flow to this side of Central Park thanks to the allure of well-positioned pre-war apartments, celebrity-laden communities, picturesque 19th-century brownstones, and a laid-back, artist's enclave vibe.
Although no longer the most expensive or rarified of New York's property markets, the century-plus of real estate history on both sides of the park offer positive, consistent returns for sellers.
Does your current portfolio feature property in one of the above discussed seller's dream markets? Or perhaps you're seeking a return—or investment—in another of New York City's highly coveted luxury communities?
Wherever your real estate journey may lead, SERHANT., and our revolutionary approach to buying and selling luxury homes in New York City, is your partner every step of the way. Combining trusted, traditional brokerage services with innovative strategies and a client-first focus, our team helps you reach the right buyers to ensure the lucrative sale you deserve.