Home sales are down

The fourth quarter of 2011 was a dismal one for the New York City residential real estate sector, per a study released today by New York University’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy.

The volume of home sales — single-family, co-op and condominium — in the five boroughs was down 15 percent quarter-over-quarter and 11 percent year-over-year, the report says. The sales volume is the lowest recorded since the second quarter of 2009. And there is little hope of sales increasing soon, as the number of new residential building permits citywide was down 60 percent quarter-over-quarter, according to the report. [more]

While the wave of residential market reports issued by brokerages earlier this month found Manhattan home prices to be stable, the Real Estate Board of New York found prices to be increasing.

The average Manhattan home price in the third quarter increased 5 percent compared to the prior year quarter to $1.39 million, according to the REBNY report released today. Citywide, REBNY found home prices increased 8 percent to $780,000. Chelsea/Flatiron saw the biggest price increase over the last 12 months, as homes averaged $2.08 million, 16 percent more than they cost in the third quarter of 2010. – Adam Fusfeld [more]

Prudential Douglas Elliman Managing Director Jacky Teplitzky today has
close to 10 listings under $1 million but no listings over $10 million,
a switch from the way she used to do business. Teplitzky told the New
York Observer that her team has been able to make just as much money
during the bust as it did during the boom — but it has to sell a
significantly higher volume of apartments to do so because prices have
fallen. Teplitzky also discussed how she branded herself when she
started out in real estate and about her relationship with
fellow Elliman broker Dolly Lenz. [more]