Queens I-sales dollar volume rises 69% in first half of year

Queens investment sales continued to climb upward in the first half of the year, with dollar volume sales up 69 percent year-over-year, according to a report from Ariel Property Advisors.

The area saw 371 transactions involving 511 properties over a six-month period, totaling nearly $2.5 billion.

Transaction and property volume had more modest increases of 6 percent and 9 percent, respectively, compared to last year.

The borough’s largest boost in sales came from commercial properties, which accounted for $845.4 million, or 34 percent of all dollar volume. Queens’ priciest commercial deal was Blackstone Group’s $400 million acquisition of Sky View Parc complex in Flushing. Vornado Realty Trust shelled out $142 million for a Long Island City office building along Northern Boulevard and and helped bring commercial dollar volume up 291 percent from the first half of 2014.

“As the economy picks up and consumers become more confident, we’re seeing incredible demand for commercial and retail assets throughout the borough,” said Ariel Property Advisors’ Daniel Wechsler in the report.

Astoria and Long Island City continued to dominate the investment sales market and represented 55 percent of all dollar volume in the borough and 68 percent of transactions. Astoria’s active multifamily market may have helped to entice Kushner Cos. to makes its first purchase in the borough, a four-building portfolio for $51 million.

Adam America also made its first leap into the Queen’s investment sales market, with the purchase of a development site at 22-112 Jackson Avenue for $43.5 million, or $257 per square foot. Development site sales were up slightly year-over-year but dipped from the prior six months. The average sales price for development sites increased to $168 per buildable square feet from $164 during the same period last year.

Over in Brooklyn, investment sales dollar volume too rose, by 74 percent, year-over-year.