From the February issue: The final quarter of 2015 was good to owners of residential real estate in Manhattan. Both average and median sales price records in the borough were shattered, hitting $1.94 million and $1.15 million, respectively. But will the U.S. Treasury Department’s initiative to monitor all-cash transactions from LLC buyers deter sales in the luxury sector and drive down prices?
The Treasury’s pilot program, which is designed to prevent money laundering, is only being tested in Manhattan and Miami-Dade County.
Some say that in addition to the LLC initiative, there are other concerning factors for the market, including increased interest rates, high inventory and the presidential election.
“Pricing is rarely influenced by a single event,” said Engel & Völkers NYC President Stuart Siegel.
Whether that’s true remains to be seen.
In Brooklyn, meanwhile, new development sales prices also broke records at the end of the year, according to a report from Miller Samuel. The average price for a new Brooklyn condo shot up to $1,146 per square foot — a 23.5 percent increase year over year and a 33.6 percent increase from the third quarter of 2015.
“Tough to beat 2015, but we’ll see strong numbers until more product comes to the market,” said Rob Morea of Great Jones Realty, citing the current lack of supply pushing prices upward.
