Brokerage firms and database firm Streeteasy.com unleashed their first-quarter reports for the Manhattan real-estate market, and yes, Virginia, the average price for an apartment did fall. Streeteasy.com saw both median and average prices (including condos, co-ops, and new developments) declining 7.8 percent and 8.4 percent respectively since last quarter. Miller Samuel’s Prudential Douglas Elliman survey noted the price-per-square-foot measure dipping to $1,025, down 1.3 percent from the same period in 2010, and 3.2 percent from last quarter. And wait, there’s more: Halstead Property found apartments taking 119 days to sell, a little longer compared to the fourth quarter of 2010 (but similar to a year ago).
The condo market brought surprisingly upbeat news, however. Miller Samuel saw price per square foot in this segment inch up to $1,216 from $1,154 same time last year. Corcoran’s seeing some volume momentum build, with first-quarter sales up 7 percent over last quarter and 6 percent from a year ago. Townhouse sales rose 52 percent from last year, too, with the median price rising by 32 percent over last quarter and 14 percent from 2010. According to Streeteasy.com, 2,309 listings went into contract, a 10.1 percent bump from last quarter. But, apropos for this topsy-turvy quarter, that number is slightly off from last year, which found 2,390 apartments going into contract.
