Long Island City prices (source: Modern Spaces)
For the first time in several years, Long Island City apartment sales prices rose across the board in 2011 and buyers put a premium on larger units, according to a year-end report released yesterday by Modern Spaces.
The average price per square-foot of a studio increased 3.6 percent from 2010 to $697.45, and the average price paid per square-foot for a one-bedroom jumped 3.4 percent to $700.94. But the biggest increases occurred in the two- and three-bedroom sectors.
Whereas in 2010, buyers received a discount of about $20 per square-foot for purchasing those larger units, last year they paid a $50 to $80 premium for apartments with multiple bedrooms. The average price per square-foot of a two-bedroom apartment gained 15.3 percent to $755.14, while the average price of a three-bedroom apartment increased 20.6 percent to $788.97.
There were a total of 2,437 apartments sold in 2011 compared to 2,443 in 2010, and the inventory is dwindling rapidly. Just 9 percent of apartments are available for sale after 2011, compared to 23 percent when 2010 came to a close.
Inventory is also decreasing in the rental market, whose vacancy rate tumbled to 2 percent from 6 percent in 2010. Rents increased significantly for doorman buildings, whereas non-doorman rents remained stagnant and even fell slightly.
The average monthly rent of a studio in a doorman building in Long Island City was up 18 percent to $1,969. One bedrooms rented for $2,789, a 10.5 percent increase, and two bedrooms leased for $3,854, a 6.3 percent gain. Rents for three-bedroom apartments in doorman buildings jumped a whopping 15.3 percent to $5,323 in 2011.
In non-doorman, elevator buildings rents fell $25 per month to $1,475 for a studio and $50 to $2,050 for a one-bedroom. Two-bedrooms held steady at $2,800. One-bedroom and two-bedroom units in walk-ups rented for $50 and $100 less than they did last year, at $1,800 and $2,500, respectively. — Adam Fusfeld
