Affordability, uncertain financing tamp down broker confidence

Although real estate brokers in New York City are generally feeling better about the current market than they did this time last year, they see the future as a little less bright.

The confidence of commercial and residential brokers in the city increased to 8.75 out of 10 in the third quarter, down from 8.89 in the second quarter of 2013 but up from 8.55 in 2012’s third quarter, according to the Real Estate Board of New York’s latest survey.

The results are based on a survey sent to brokers asking them to rate market conditions on a scale from 0 to 10. About 350 brokers responded this quarter, Crain’s reported.

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According to REBNY, residential brokers are more pessimistic regarding the future than commercial brokers and are worried that the inventory in the pipeline is out of reach for the average customer. Their confidence about the next sixth months fell to 8.19 in the third quarter from 8.74 last year.

“The new developments are not aimed for the residents of the city and very little affordable units are being constructed,” one unnamed broker told the group in his response.

Additionally, brokers overall are worried about what they perceive to be a more difficult market for financing spurred by disagreements in Washington, D.C., over debt and other issues. Both residential and commercial brokers rated the expected financing market at some of the lowest respective levels since the second quarter of 2012. [Crain’s]Melvin Backman