New York

New York’s residential real estate markets all continue to face challenging times in 2024. Purchasers continue to experience diminished buying power due to ongoing inflation, recession fears, and increased interest rates. Inventory hit new lows in starter-home and mid-level markets, while luxury category offerings started to pile up.

The international buyer’s market remains quite weak, as does the first-time home buyer’s market — almost one-third of what it was and the lowest measure in a decade.

In 2024, cash purchases are king and we’ve seen more of them as financed purchases dwindle. We even see more cash being used in financed purchases to keep the monthly carry within reason. Luckily, Wall Street continues to hand investors good returns, and some of those are finding their way into the residential real estate market.

Condominium prices are down, while co-operative prices are up, comprising over 60% of the period’s sales. Price cuts are now more common, but bidding wars still exist for highly desirable, rare, or unusual properties that hit the market well-priced.

Renovated properties still outpaced estate-condition properties, but some are negotiating hard on valuable gems to get them at bargain prices. The median sales price slid again by 2.7% annually to $1,130,000 — its lowest level in four years. The luxury median price rose almost 9% to $5,800,000 while new development offerings rose to a median sale of $2.100,000, up a little over 3%.

The first three months of the year are typically quiet as many New Yorkers head to warmer climates and pause their home searches. However, the spring market, kicking off right after President’s Day weekend, looks promising and might outperform last year, depending on various financial and political developments.