Though the NYC sales market continued to slow in July, sellers offered fewer discounts than they did earlier in the summer, according to the July 2019 StreetEasy Market Reports.
In Manhattan, the number of price cuts offered by sellers declined four percentage points from two months earlier, when 15.6 percent of homes had a discount — the highest share in 2019 so far. Queens and Brooklyn saw a similar trend, with price cuts down 1.5 and 2.8 percentage points from the highs of earlier this summer.
The StreetEasy Price Index in Brooklyn and Queens dropped to levels not seen since 2013, falling 1.4 percent in Brooklyn and remaining unchanged in Queens since last year. However, these price declines were driven largely by a surplus of new inventory in East Brooklyn and Northeast Queens. Meanwhile, in Manhattan, prices decreased 4.5 percent to $1,099,175, their lowest level since April, 2015.
With so many NYC homes not finding buyers, there is a continued glut of for-sale inventory. On top of the existing surplus, new inventory increased in all three boroughs analyzed, led by Queens, where 877 new homes came onto the market.
“It’s typical for the number of price cuts to dip during the summer, when many sellers skip town and shift their focus away from selling their homes,” says StreetEasy Economist Nancy Wu. “But for motivated sellers, now is actually the time to offer discounts and help prospective buyers notice your property. With the return of home-shopping season this fall, and a wave of new homes coming to market, sellers will soon have even more competition, making additional price cuts — possibly at record levels — virtually inevitable.”
July 2019 Key Findings — Manhattan
Price cuts declined everywhere except Upper Manhattan. The share of price cuts dropped 1.4 percentage points boroughwide to 11.6 percent. Seller discounts in Upper Manhattan, the only submarket without a decrease, remained the same year-over-year at 12.9 percent.
Total sales inventory increased. Inventory rose 10.9 percent compared to last July, with 9,822 homes on the market. Recorded sales prices dropped to 2017 levels. Manhattan’s median recorded sales price dropped 12 percent since last year to $967,250 — dipping below $1 million and hitting the lowest level since October 2017.
Rents reached all-time highs. The StreetEasy Manhattan Rent Index reached $3,295 — an annual increase of 3.0 percent. Rents rose in all submarkets, led by the Upper East Side, where a 2.8 percent uptick drove rents to $3,060.
Brooklyn
Home prices in Brooklyn dropped, led entirely by weakness in East Brooklyn. The StreetEasy Brooklyn Price Index dropped 1.4 percent since last year, led by a 3.3 percent decline in the East Brooklyn submarket — where a surplus of inventory and new development has led to falling prices.
The share of price cuts remained the same. The share of price cuts in the borough remained at 11.8 percent year-over-year. The share of price cuts in North Brooklyn decreased the most, falling 2.5 percentage points year-over-year to 12.1 percent.
Inventory increased boroughwide, led by Northwest Brooklyn. The number of homes for sale in Brooklyn rose 16.9 percent to 6,031, with inventory in Northwest Brooklyn up 29.5 percent, to 934 homes on the market.
The median recorded sales price fell. Recorded sales prices fell 1.4 percent from last year to $799,000.
Rents rose at the fastest rate since 2016. The StreeEasy Brooklyn Rent Index increased 3.2 percent, with rents reaching an all-time high of $2,676.
Queens
For the first time since 2013, prices did not rise. Boroughwide, the StreetEasy Queens Price Index remained the same as last year at $508,339, led by Northeast Queens, where a surplus of inventory caused a dip in prices. The same number of sellers offered price cuts as last year. The share of price cuts stayed flat at 10.8 percent in Queens overall, but decreased in Northwest Queens, falling 1.9 percentage points to 11.3 percent.
Sales inventory grew the most of the boroughs analyzed. Inventory reached a record high at 3,610 homes for sale — up 17.8 percent from last year.
