Manhattan’s luxury home market had a strong April 2022 despite uncertainties created by global conflicts and stock market volatility. There were 39 contracts signed on homes asking $4 million or more in Manhattan in the week ending Sunday, two more than the prior week, according to a report from Olshan Realty.
There were a total of 164 contracts signed for luxury homes in April, totaling over $1.3 billion worth of sales in Manhattan. This “solid” performance happened despite a volatile stock market and the Nasdaq seeing its worst month since 2008, the report noted.
Eziz Charyyev/ Pexels | Luxury property deals worth at least $4 million in New York City (NYC) went off the market with relative ease in 2021
The priciest home to enter into contract last week was 16ABC at 25 North Moore Street, which was listed at the beginning of April, asking for $22 million. The seller purchased the full-floor condo for $15.3 million. The unit has over 7,000 square feet, including five bedrooms, five-and-a-half bathrooms, and 45 windows that offer north, south, east and west views of the Hudson River. A living room, dining room, and kitchen span 65 feet.
Both 2020 and 2021 were extraordinary years in terms of Manhattan’s real estate market. 2020 experienced an exceptional slowdown, while 2021 broke records, according to Ms. Olshan. Inflation, rising mortgage interest rates, the unpredictability of the stock market, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are headwinds that might affect the luxury market in Manhattan in the next few months.
2021 Manhattan Luxury sales
Palo Cech/ Pexels | Overall, the inventory of Manhattan's luxury tier homes increased by 9.5%
New York’s luxury market had a strong finish to 2021, with several high-priced penthouse closings, including a TriBeCa triplex with a private pool sold by Lewis Hamilton, a British racecar driver, and Formula One champion.
More than 1,900 contracts for properties costing a total of about $16 billion were signed last year, the highest number and volume by a significant margin since Olshan Realty Inc. started tracking luxury sales in 2006.
While overseas buyers historically have helped drive the Manhattan luxury market, foreign travel to the U.S. was restricted for most of the year. Instead, buyers from the New York metro area, confident in the city’s recovery, flush with cash from a surging stock market, and able to borrow at ultra-low interest rates, dominated the market.
PhotoMIX Company/ Pexels | The average rental price in Manhattan in February 2022 was $4,906, an increase of 29.4% from February 2021
The priciest property sold in 2021 was at 220 Central Park South in Midtown, where an anonymous buyer paid $157.5 million for two floors. The limestone high-rise, overlooking the park, set the national record in 2019 for having the highest price paid for a single residence, with the sale of four floors for nearly $240 million.
For the year in Manhattan, the number of closed transactions for condos and co-ops was projected to reach 14,260, up from 7,452 in 2020 and 11,673 in 2019, according to a year-end survey.
