Manhattan Property Market Update

Posted by Wei Min Tan on January 7, 2025

The Manhattan property market is one of the most prized property markets in the world.  Our clients invest in Manhattan property for asset diversification and price stability.  Manhattan is a prime market where prices are high, appreciation is stable and rental yields are low but predictable.  Foreigners investing in Manhattan, New York property is a normal and daily event.  There are no additional stamp duties imposed on foreign buyers.

For the past 2 years, driven by high interest rates, sales volume in Manhattan has been low.  Most buyers have been all-cash as those needing a mortgage sat on the sidelines.  But I expect the market to start picking up, driven by the stock market’s performance and anticipation of lowered regulation in finance which will drive investment banking and private equity deals.  These will positively impact Manhattan real estate.

Read Wei Min’s article: Foreigner Buying Property in New York, 8 Questions That Matter

Read about Wei Min’s style in Best Manhattan property agents and Role of a buyer’s broker.

Key points of this Manhattan Property Market Update

Sales volume:  Overall sales volume was 14.4 percent higher than prior year.  This is positive as we are still experiencing limited inventory and high mortgage rates.

Cash buyers:  The market share of cash buyers in Q4’2024 was at 62.3 percent, the fourth time in 5 quarters that it was above 60 percent.

Price per sqft and median price:  In the condo market, price per sqft is at $2,127 while median price at $1.665 million.  After a few years of slowdown, price per sqft is now close to 2017’s peak of $2,149.

Manhattan Condo Market’s Key Metrics

The most recent Q4’2024 data from Miller Samuel shows average price per square foot for a Manhattan condo at $2,127.  This is a 4 percent increase compared to prior quarter.  Number of sales was at 1,131, a 14.4 percent increase from a year ago.  Median sales price was at $1.665 million, or 0.5 percent higher than a year ago.

Read Wei Min’s article: New York (Manhattan) Property Investing Strategies

Manhattan Condo Historical Price Trend

Data: Miller Samuel

The chart above shows the historical appreciation trend for Manhattan condos, with significant events circled in red.  Prices tend to appreciate over the long term, with dips during recessions.  Price per square foot was $480 in 1999, increasing to $2,127 in Q4’2024.

Prices at New Developments

New developments refer to buying a brand-new property from the developer.  These are usually sold 1–2 years before completion.  The buyer puts down a reservation deposit, waits for construction, and balance is due at eventual completion.  The average sales price of a new development was $4.28 million, 60.9 percent higher than a year ago.  Number of sales was 358, or 20.5 percent higher than a year ago.

Manhattan Rental Prices

The most recent November 2024 data shows average rental price at $5,047, 2 percent lower than prior year.  Number of new leases was 4,639, 37.7 percent higher than a year ago.  Manhattan has perhaps the lowest residential vacancy rate in the U.S., at 2.73 percent.

Is now a buyer’s market or seller’s market?

We are currently in a seller’s market as shown in the chart above.  The two most significant buyer’s markets were during the Lehman collapse in 2008/2009 and Covid, which hit Manhattan in early 2020.

Read Wei Min’s article: Buying property in New York to rent out

What We Do

We focus on global investors buying Manhattan condos for portfolio diversification and long term return-on-investment.
1) Identify the right buy based on objectives
2) Manage the buy process
3) Rent out the property
4) Manage tenants
5) Market the property at the eventual sale