A recent Daily News article reveals that Hamilton Heights is the biggest gainer in home values within Manhattan for 2013. Prices have jumped 50 percent to $320,000 from $213,000 according to the article and we assume this is mainly for the apartment market since townhouse averages are in the millions. Pricey Central Harlem apparently decreased 14 percent now to $470,000 but the article blames the dip on lack of inventory. Manhattan still was has the most valued homes overall in all of New York City with the average of $825,000:
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I really question the price--which still seems low--but this is not a surprise to anyone who lives in the area. Hamilton Heights has changed a lot in the last few years, with it seemingly accelerated the last two.
ReplyDeleteMedian home price in isolation is a pretty poor measure of real estate performance, especially when looking at micro-markets like neighborhoods. Apartment mix (size, quality, any income restrictions, etc.) is more likely to drive most of the observed changes. For example, median prices in my building in 2013 were up 250% from 2012. Did I fail to mention that only two sales occurred, a studio in 2012 and the penthouse in 2013? Perhaps over a large enough sample like all of NYC there is a decent chance that apartment mix will be somewhat consistent each year, but no way with neighborhoods.
ReplyDeleteThe NYDN really misses here if you ask me, especially when it says a lack of inventory is to blame for an observed price decrease in Central Harlem. In isolation, low inventory would drive prices higher. But it makes for a smaller sample, making it much more likely that the apartment mix changed significantly. Prices in Central Harlem rose last year, and certainly are not doing anything so drastically different from West Harlem or Hamilton Heights. The sample is just too small to look at median prices.