From the March issue: Investors have long viewed prime Manhattan residential real estate as the equivalent of a blue-chip stock: expensive, but virtually guaranteed to appreciate over time. That is, until the 2008 Lehman Brothers crash sent prices plummeting, turning the conventional wisdom on its head. After Lehman, foreclosures appeared in investor-owned apartments all over Manhattan as the chasm between monthly costs and rental income widened. Buying an investment property in Manhattan suddenly seemed like a terrible idea, and all but a few daring small investors had since avoided Manhattan real estate. Instead, the city’s residential sales have been dominated by buyers looking for a home.
Surprisingly, however, brokers say that is now changing. [more]
