Two dozen homes priced at $4 million or more went into contract in New York City last week, a slight dip from the two prior weeks, Olshan Realty reported Monday.
“We’re way behind the golden years of development, which were ‘13, ‘14 and ‘15,” says Donna Olshan,” president of Olshan Realty. “Now we’re hitting a period where people put prices on that are too high and inventory is building up and there’s an oversupply of luxury real estate in certain areas, like Midtown Manhattan in particular. If people correct prices, these apartments sell, but they’re so often looking in the rear-view mirror.”
Of the homes that went into contract last week, 23 were apartments and one was a townhouse, according to the weekly Olshan report. By comparison, the week of May 23 saw 33 homes go into contract, and the week of May 16 saw 30, according to Olshan.
The priciest apartment scooped up last week was the $17.5 million penthouse at 25 Mercer St., a condo triplex with five bedrooms and five-and-a-half bathrooms, 13-foot ceilings and two terraces totaling 2,600 square feet of outdoor space. The apartment, which is part of a five-unit boutique condo in SoHo, had been on the market since April, Olshan Realty reported.
The next priciest contract was for 61B at 252 East 57th Street, which had an asking price of $11.4 million, down from $13.4 million when it hit the market last March. The 3,321-square foot unit is smaller, at four bedrooms and four-and-a-half baths. There the amenities are rather luxe, with a 74-foot pool, a library, billiards and screening rooms, furnished guest suites and a play space and grooming station for dogs.
While the week of May 23 was record-breaking for 2016, it also saw the highest number of average days on the market (366) and the highest price drop (11 percent below asking price), according to Olshan. “What that tells me is if you correct prices, you see contract activity, but the luxury market isn’t rip roaring,” she said.
While May’s numbers have been good, previous months were not. In fact, in April, 92 contracts were signed for apartments over $4 million, as compared to April 2015, when that number was 129.