New Development Sales Contracts Jump 109% in New York

The pace of new development sales contracts are barely slowing in New York, even as the coronavirus stages a comeback.

Some 421 contracts were signed across the city in August, up 109 percent from a year ago and 88 percent more than August 2019, according to a monthly analysis of new development sales contracts by Marketproof, a real estate analytics company. That made it the fourth-busiest month since 2015, beaten only by March, April and May of this year.

Velocity slowed at the end of July, leading Kael Goodman, CEO of Marketproof and the report’s author, to wonder whether the increasing spread of Delta might presage a slow August. That didn’t prove to be the case.

“We had another amazing, amazing month,” Goodman said. “No Delta dip.”

Most of last month’s contracts were signed in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Manhattan had 196 deals, followed by Brooklyn’s 185. Queens had 39.

The best-selling projects that reported the largest number of contracts were Related Companies’ Lantern House, 130 William Street, 11 Hoyt Street in downtown Brooklyn and an Astoria project at 32-86 33rd Street.

Notably, the new development condominium market grew last month while the resale market had a month-over-month decline. Although 533 resale contracts were signed, which outnumbered August’s new developments condo contracts, that marked a 7 percent decline compared with July for the resale market. For new development condos, August’s activity was up 16 percent from July’s.

“What it shows is a preference for new,” Goodman said.