“Twenty contracts a week means the market is normal,” said Donna Olshan, Olshan Realty’s president. “At anything below 20 a week, the market is correcting.”
Still, Olshan wrote in her report released Monday that the “flush days” of the housing boom, when contracts generally totaled 30 or more per week, are likely over. She sees the luxury market’s dynamics changing, with some buyers newly deterred and others motivated to find a deal.
For luxury buyers in Manhattan, falling stock prices are the leading deterrent, Olshan said, as they’ve watched net worths tumble by millions of dollars in recent months and may be anticipating smaller bonuses or corporate reorganizations. But the easing of the market could provide some opportunity for cash buyers or those who want to jump into the market before interest rates rise any more.
“When things are bad, it’s a great time to shop,” Olshan said.
Not every buyer or seller is ready to make that jump after the past few months of mixed economic signals.
“Psychologically, they don’t feel as certain,” Compass’s Jay said. “People need to feel certainty in order to move forward.”
Still, some purchases are taking place as serious buyers make reasonable offers and determined sellers are willing to accept less than they’d initially wanted, according to Jay. She listed an Upper East Side two-bedroom in early May with the seller understanding he’d likely have to accept less than his asking price of $1.799 million. Just three buyers toured the apartment and two made offers below that price. The seller accepted the cash one and signed a contract by the end of the month.
“There will always be people who need to buy and there will always be people that need to sell,” Jay said.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.