Manhattan luxury real estate market has best first quarter since 2019

Manhattan apartment sales jumped 29% in the first quarter from the same period a year ago, as the wealthy sought refuge from volatile stocks to buy real estate, according to new reports.

There were 2,560 closed sales in the quarter, up from 1,988 a year ago, according to a report from real estate appraiser Miller Samuel and brokerage Douglas Elliman. The total value of apartment sales increased even more, reaching $5.7 billion, up 56% over the same quarter last year.

The strength has largely been driven by the high end of the market and luxury properties. Sales of apartments priced at over $5 million soared by 49% compared with a year ago, according to brokerage Compass. The ultra-high-end, or properties priced at $20 million or more, had its best first quarter since 2019, Compass said.

“Largely insulated by mortgage-rate fluctuations and driven by portfolio diversification strategies, this highlights renewed confidence among luxury buyers and underscores the broader generational wealth underway,” Compass said.

Since the ultra-wealthy tend to buy apartments in cash, without needing a mortgage, they have been less deterred by continually high interest rates. Fully 58% of the sales in the quarter were all cash, with the more expensive apartments (over $3 million) seeing 90% of sales from all-cash buyers.

The weakest segment of the market was what brokers consider the “mid-market” of Manhattan real estate, or properties priced between $1 million and $3 million. Signed contracts for those properties declined by 10%, according to Compass, while properties at the lower end, priced between $500,000 to $1 million performed better.

Brokers say the renewed strength of Manhattan real estate is being driven by both macro and micro forces.

While Manhattan’s real estate market has long been linked to the stock market, given the city’s reliance on financial markets for jobs and wealth, apartment sales decoupled from the volatile performance of stocks in the first quarter. Brokers say the uncertain outlook for stocks makes real estate and hard assets more attractive, especially in prime wealth markets like Manhattan.

They also say back-to-office mandates from big banks and other companies are bringing affluent buyers back to the city on a more permanent basis. The emergence of the “boomerang wealthy” — those who moved to spots like Florida during the pandemic and are now moving back to New York — is also boosting sales.

“There’s a noticeable movement of people returning from Florida and relocating from Los Angeles,” said real estate agent Charlie Attias of Compass.

The “great wealth transfer” is also driving sales. With trillions of dollars starting to pass from baby…