Only 12 homes worth $4 million and above changed hands last week in Manhattan, the lowest total since the first week of January, which included New Year’s Day.
This means the number of contracts signed in that price range has dropped 23% year to date compared to the same period last year, from 878 to 677, according to Olshan Realty’s latest health check of Manhattan’s luxury housing sector released Monday.
MORE:First Look at 432 Park Ave.’s Amenities
One contributing factor to the lower numbers this year was a big decline in sales on the Upper East Side, according to Olshan. Last year at this time, 245 sales were registered at $4 million and above in the neighborhood, compared with 145 this year.
"You can blame some of the decline on the growing unpopularity of co-ops," said Donna Olshan, president of Olshan. "The younger audience does not value the snob appeal of many Park, Fifth and Central Park West co-ops. A co-op run like a private club just doesn't cut it anymore with many young affluent buyers. They want amenities, space, high ceilings, and they don't want to be dictated to."
For the fifth time this year, the most expensive sale last week was at 432 Park Ave.: a 2,633-square-foot apartment in the building changed hands for $21.5 million, which translates to $8,166 per square foot.
MORE:U.S. Cash Sales This Year Suffer Their Lowest Start Since 2008
The three-bedroom, three-bathroom unit in the Rafael Viñoly-designed super-tall, super-skinny building features 12½-foot ceilings and views of Central Park.
The No. 2 contract was a four-bedroom penthouse at 132 E. 65th St. that went for for $10.995 million. The asking price was reduced from $14.5 million, when the apartment went on the market in December 2014 after being purchased from Toll Brothers for $13.6 million in September 2013.
| July 25-31 | |
| Average Asking Price: | $6,966,267 |
| Median Asking Price: | $6,539,995 |
| Average Discount from Original Ask to Last Asking Price: | 5% |
| Average Days on Market: | 431 |
Source: Olshan