![\"\"](\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!I6Uo!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3278e90-ff7b-4029-8714-aa2ab1b9737c_1000x1107.png\")
<\/a>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!lkmI!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb20297d4-af17-41dd-9001-98fb7df067cf_1000x1106.png\")
<\/a>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!hQcZ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2d1569ef-cc5a-4b99-8339-2b4ba10406a6_1000x1103.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe median sales price has remained at a record high of $1,250,000 for the past two quarters, rising 5.9% year over year. Average and median sales prices have generally been flat over the past decade, though they have risen modestly over the past few years.<\/p>\n
The monthly payment continues to rise, but after adjusting for inflation, it is actually lower than in 2008 during the housing bubble.<\/p>\n Listing inventory, after accounting for the supply Compass-Anywhere hides from the public and the portals, remains below the 25-year average, which is one reason Manhattan housing prices have risen annually over the past couple of years.<\/p>\n It\u2019s always good to remind ourselves that Manhattan housing prices do not correlate with the stock market (DJIA). Until the financial crisis in 2008, I thought I was on to something using Manhattan sales, since it is more reasonable to compare them to compensation and employment. Still, they soon went rogue, and there is no correlation.<\/p>\n The average square footage of a Manhattan townhouse was 4,552, down 7.9% year over year. As a result, all three price trend metrics were pulled down, as shown in the matrix table above. One- to three-family townhouses tend to represent about 2% of all sales when combined with co-op and condo sales. Little to no new townhouses are being built, largely because buyers demand authentic turn-of-the-century structures even if the homes have been gutted to the party walls. For more than the past few decades, sales have largely been within a tight range, and prices have steadily trended higher over time. Both of these results are consistent with a fixed housing stock.<\/p>\n Manhattan’s median sales price hit a record $1,250,000 for the second straight quarter, up 5.9% from last year. Inflation-adjusted, monthly payments are still lower than in 2008, but limited inventory is keeping prices climbing, and long ago, they stopped tracking the stock market. Townhouses (1-3 family), about 2% of residential sales, got smaller on average (down 7.9% to 4,552 sq ft), which pulled their price metrics down, while a fixed supply keeps long-term prices trending up.<\/p>\n The Actual Final Thought \u2013 Honestly, I\u2019ve had a few<\/a>.<\/p>\n My Housing Notes column<\/a> also appears several times a week<\/a> over at The Real Deal<\/a>!<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n