Williamsburg

Only 73 condominiums sold in Williamsburg during the first quarter, a post-financial crisis low for the Brooklyn neighborhood, according to a residential market report released today by the Real Estate Board of New York.

The figure represents a 52 percent decrease from the same time last year, the report shows. The drop can be attributed to an historic lack of condos and co-ops in the area, where new developments are mostly rentals, REBNY said. [more]

From the March issue: With a continued inventory shortage and interest rates still low, bidding wars have emerged as the new norm for increasingly desperate buyers, industry experts said. And while sellers rejoice as prices get bid up, brokers struggle to please frustrated clients. Bidding wars have been prevalent for some time. But lately, brokers said, multiple bids and “best and final” negotiations — in which all of the potential buyers simultaneously submit their final offer and the seller chooses between them — now take place in the majority of deals. [more]

From the February issue: So much for a winter slowdown. Even as the mercury dipped in January, demand for apartments was high. Driving the fast-moving market, experts said, were plunging inventory and low-interest financing. Limited inventory options and increased demand will definitely push prices higher this winter,” said Lisa Strobing, an executive vice president at Bellmarc Realty, noting that January was as busy as springtime and saw “solid traffic.” [more]

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In recent years, the Manhattan residential market has careened up and down like a roller coaster. But the number of transactions has largely remained on par from where they were in the early 2000s, even as prices have climbed, a report released today by Douglas Elliman shows. The report tracked the Manhattan condo and co-op market over the past decade beginning in 2003. [more]

Eric Barron and Noah Rosenblatt

Although many Manhattan home sellers rushed to close deals before the end of 2012 — when a package of tax rate hikes went into effect — it seems that a volume of closed sales are still heading down the pipeline. As of Jan. 1, 2013 there were 21 percent more pending sales of Manhattan condominiums, co-ops and townhouses than the same day last year, according to a report issued today by UrbanDigs and Keller Williams NYC. [more]

From the January issue: Winter is usually the slowest time of year for Manhattan real estate sales. This season, however, the continued strength of the luxury market — paired with the pending change in tax rates for capital gains — prompted a spike in sales activity. In the fourth quarter of 2012, there were 2,598 closed sales in Manhattan, according to Douglas Elliman’s latest market report, which was prepared by appraisal firm Miller Samuel. That’s up a dramatic 29.2 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011. Listing inventory, meanwhile, plummeted 34.2 percent to 4,749 from 7,221 at the same time last year. [more]

From the January issue: Although the European debt crisis seems to be further from investors’ minds today than it was a year ago, fresh hurdles like the fiscal cliff standoff in Washington, prospective tax changes and a New York City mayoral election loom. And those are not the only questions that industry pros are pondering as 2013 gets underway. Also on their minds: Will the tech sector continue to prop up commercial leasing? What kinds of housing stock will move — and what will languish on the market? Where will the next wave of retail condo sales take place? And which overall sectors of the market will investors gravitate towards? This month, The Real Deal talked to New York City real estate insiders from several different sectors of the market to get their industry predictions for 2013. [more]

Gregory Heym

Building permits for new properties are on the upswing, meaning that new residential units will hit the market in the next several years. However, there won’t be enough apartments to meet demand, the New York Times reported. From January to October of this year, the Department of Buildings issued a total of 40 permits for new residential construction in Manhattan. These projects come with a total of 2,287 units, which is a 15 percent gain from the same period in 2011. Brooklyn saw a higher number: Permits were filed for a total of 2,756 units — up from 1,522 during the same period last year, the Times said. [more]

Williamsburg waterfront residential developments, the Edge and Northside Piers

Brooklyn’s gentrified and gentrifying neighborhoods have experienced price-per-square-foot gains, according to PropertyShark’s blog. Between 2004 to 2012, three neighborhoods in particular — Williamsburg, Prospect Lefferts Gardens and Gowanus — have had the most significant growth on a price-per-square-foot basis. [more]