Brooklyn sales volume sees sharp drop

 
The volume of residential sales in Brooklyn dropped by nearly half to just over 2,000 units between April and June, compared to the same period a year ago, according to a report by Prudential Douglas Elliman.

Sales of one- to three-family homes, condominiums and co-ops fell from 3,601 units in last year’s second quarter to 2,031 units in the same period this year. Days that Brooklyn homes spent on the market remained flat, rising from 135 last year to 136 this year during the same period.

The median price fell by 1.9 percent to $525,000 in the second quarter from $535,000 in the same period last year, according to the report, which was prepared by Miller Samuel.

Different markets within the borough fared worse than others. Median prices for one- to three-family homes dipped by 1 percent to $594,000, year over year, while the median price for condominiums rose by 8 percent to $514,725.

“The take away is that sales activity is down from last year across most major markets within Brooklyn, and borough-wide the median price is down slightly,” said Jonathan Miller, Miller Samuel’s president and chief executive officer.

“On the condo side, you’ve got new developments in the housing stock that offset some of the declines in demand,” he said, explaining the rise in condo prices.

He would not attempt to predict whether the decline in home sales would continue.

“Overall prices are moving sideways essentially. I am not sure that would change over the next couple quarters,” he said.