November Market Update

The LevinKong Team would like to wish everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving, and we hope that the abundance, charity, and family-focus of this holiday continues throughout the year. The holidays bring amazing opportunities to give back to society and those in need; we are incredibly grateful for the chance to help feed families in need. We truly appreciate our role in the New York City community and – as a team – strive to be positive, supportive, and community minded.

While many are looking to take the rest of the year off from real estate activities, we have been advising many of our buyers to eye December as an advantageous time to make offers on certain properties that have been languishing on the market. Seasonality is still a reality in NYC, and many of these properties are becoming more vulnerable as we inch closer to the holidays.

In general, the market decline seems to be slowing as of late. Across the market, in general, average price per square foot is down 4% from this time last year, average days on market are flat year over year, and pending sales are down a meager 1%. These numbers seem to signal a deceleration in the negative trajectory of market conditions. We are not speaking of the incredible oversupply in the new construction segment, however. While we don’t anticipate rapid change in either direction, there are certainly opportunities all over the market. Depending on where you are positioned, you can certainly benefit from them.

Low interest rates, a healthy economy and encouraging news on the trade-war front, have most experts anticipating a continuation of historically low interest rates. Broadly speaking, Jerome Powell (speaking for The Fed) repeated language saying he sees, “the current stance of monetary policy as likely to remain appropriate” and “well positioned” so long as current “generally good” conditions persist. The average U.S. rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage likely will remain low at 3.7% in 2019 and 2020, according to experts. That’s more than a percentage point lower than the 4.8% average in 2018. In this unrivaled borrowing environment and dynamic market, opportunity truly abounds for those who have the guidance and willingness to take a closer look.