We published our report on Manhattan market sales for 4Q 2012 today.   I’ve been writing this series for Douglas Elliman since 1994 (I was 5 years old).

My Take

-Listing inventory fell to it’s lowest level in more than 12 years (since we began tracking it) to 4,749 apartments, may cause upward pressure on prices in 2013.
-A record fourth quarter with 2,598 sales – highest 4th quarter in at least 25 years we’ve tracked it, spurred by looming changes to federal tax laws, general economic improvement, elevated activity in an already recovering market.
-Price indicators were mixed, showing stability but with some evidence of growth by pending, size and quintile analysis.
-Days on market expanded as new supply shortage caused older inventory to be sold off.
-Luxury price trends out gained overall market yet luxury inventory did not fall as fast as many luxury sellers tried to “copycat” trophy sale success.

Here’s an excerpt from the report:

…The Manhattan housing market continued to
be characterized by falling inventory across the
re-sale and new development markets and an
uptick in sales. Most of the price indicators in
this report continue to range from demonstrating
stability to modest growth. The market appears
poised for some level of price appreciation in
2013, considering historically low mortgage rates
that drive sales, coupled with a chronic shortage
of active listings, which are at their lowest level in
more than 12 years….

The charts and data tables are updated to include the fourth quarter of 2012.

Here is some of the press coverage for the report today.

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The Elliman Report: 4Q 2012 Manhattan Sales [Miller Samuel] The Elliman Report: 4Q 2012 Manhattan Sales [Prudential Douglas Elliman]