NYC Real Estate X Covid-19 (Week 7)

MAY 1, 2020

NYC Real Estate x Covid-19 (week 7)

Since Covid-19, the Manhattan real estate market has seen its listing supply drop to about half of what we are used to seeing this time of year.

This is due to would-be Spring sellers waiting to list their properties and others pulling their listed properties off the market. The latter has occurred to such a large scale that there are currently almost as many homes off the market as there are on the market. This is something we haven’t seen before or at least since the recording of real estate data. As you would imagine, the number of signed contracts is also down. This is an important metric to note as it is the real-time demand indicator.

On the brighter note, that declining trend of weekly signed contracts appears to have flattened. We need a few more weeks of data know for sure, but hopefully we will see those numbers start to increase soon. It is also important to note that it is taking significantly longer to get into contract as attorneys must maneuver through a whole new set of obstacles to complete their due diligence. I am working on one that is in its fourth week and I just heard of one that took six weeks to get signed. This could be contributing to those lower numbers. Time will tell.

The majority of sellers wishing to pull their homes off the market have already appeared to have done so. During the first two weeks of the pandemic, 800 units came off the market, compared to just 200 during these past two weeks.

Even though buyers currently have more leverage, you can still sell your home in today's market without giving it away.

If you are a seller in this market, you are in one of two situations: either you need to sell now or you’re not in a hurry. If you feel comfortable having your home shown virtually, you should have your home on the market. If you don’t feel comfortable, then obviously don’t. The low inventory cuts down the competition and buyers are looking. Now, some of these buyers may be bottom-feeders, but if you are working with an experienced agent, they will help you sift through those and bring real buyers to the surface. The key piece of advice I have for sellers is to be patient.