Active listings in Manhattan are being snapped up more quickly than ever, according to a new report from Brown Harris Stevens. In July, the Manhattan absorption rate – the number of months it would take to sell all active listings in the market – was 4.3 months, or 11 percent lower than in June, and down 38 percent from the same month in 2012.
The falling rate, due to a combination of both fewer listings and an increase in the number of closings, is significantly lower than the six-month threshold used to indicate a seller’s market.
The West Side, defined in the report as 59th Street to 110th Street bordered by the Hudson River to the west and Fifth Avenue to the east, remains Manhattan’s tightest market with a 3.2-month supply of apartments for sale. Midtown West, down to 34th Street, posted the biggest decline: The area’s absorption rate fell to 3.2 months in July from 7.7 months this time a year ago.
Manhattan-wide, three-bedroom apartments hit an absorption rate of 7.0 months in July, the borough’s highest by unit type. One-bedrooms posted the lowest, with an absorption rate of 3.7 month in July, down 40 percent from 6.2 months a year ago. — Julie Strickland