Development site prices are having a field day in New York’s Long Island City. Real Estate Weekly reports on the explosive growth of plot prices over the past three years in the Queens neighborhood, which is becoming increasingly popular with families. Since 2006, more than 8,600 units of housing — 2,200 condos and 6,400 rental units — have been completed in Long Island City and more than 22,500 are in the planning and construction stage, according to the LIC Partnership. This demand pushed the average price of prime Long Island City development sites to nearly $250 per buildable square foot in the first half of 2015, a 269 percent jump compared to the first half of 2012 when developers were picking up land for an average of $67 per buildable square foot, according to Eastern Consolidated’s MetroGrid Report: Long Island City.
Average condominium prices in Long Island City are rising in tandem with development costs, however, jumping over 98 percent to $1.27 million today from $640,000 in the first half of 2012.
These upward trends, and relatively low site prices compared to Manhattan and Brooklyn, will insure that Long Island City is subject to investment, and trend stories, for some time to come. [Real Estate Weekly]View full listing (pictured top)