The pandemic has taken its toll on New York City’s real estate market, giving homebuyers more leverage to buy during these months of quarantine.
StreetEasy recently released a report that examined the market in New York City throughout the pandemic. According to the report’s findings, of the homes that closed between mid-March through September, 74% sold for less than the seller’s original asking price. During the same time period in 2018, 64.5% of homes sold below the asking price.
Throughout the pandemic, a handful of New York City neighborhoods had bigger discounts than they have in years past. The area with the highest discounts was Midtown with a 12.4% median discount, or $250,000 off the price. The report found that 83.3% of homes in the neighborhood sold for under the asking price (of which the median asking price was $1,475,000) and the median sales price was $1,225,000.
Following Midtown was Jamaica Estates in Queens with an 11.1% median discount offering with 90.1% of homes asking under the listed price. The next highest discounted neighborhoods include Jamaica (10.1% discounts), Tribeca (10.1% discounts) and Elmhurst (9.0%).
“There are very few areas experiencing bidding wars in New York City, and we don’t expect that to change anytime soon,” says StreetEasy Economist Nancy Wu. “The large gaps between asking and final closing prices show that prices are still elevated — especially in centrally located neighborhoods in Manhattan. The pandemic has changed what buyers across all price points are looking for in a home, and sellers must respond to this change in demand.”
Despite the number of discounts that were offered throughout the city, five neighborhoods had consistent bidding wars because they offered more space. All of the neighborhoods were outside of Manhattan: Downtown Brooklyn, Flatbush, Gowanus and Greenwood in Brooklyn, and South Jamaica in Queens.
Even during the pandemic, New Yorkers are more inclined to buy a home. StreetEasy found that 70% of buyers were planning on moving within New York City in the next year and 17% are planning to move to take advantage of lower prices and discounts on the market as a result of COVID-19.
Read the full report at streeteasy.com.
