Brooklyn wrapped up 2022 with high home prices and low inventory

Brooklyn’s housing market ended last year at a slow pace, bringing good and bad news to NYC homebyers. Home prices in this borough failed to set new records. However, the low number of available listings pushed New Yorkers to participate in bidding wars. 

Homes in Brooklyn sold for a median of $950,000 in the fourth quarter of the last year, according to the report prepared by appraiser Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel Inc. While the median sale price fell 0.9 percent from the previous quarter, it still remained the third highest on record. The limited supply of new listings keeps home prices from falling further.  

There were 2,582 homes listed for sale in Brooklyn in the last four months of 2022, down nearly 18 percent from the previous quarter and about 7 percent from the same time in 2021. The low number of available apartments created a jump in competition among homebuyers. Listings spent, on average, 65 days on the market, 34 days fewer than in 2021. In addition, the bidding wars accounted for one-third of all closings, the highest level on record. 

“Lower affordability through higher mortgage rates and housing prices has cooled demand,” said Jonathan Miller. “However, earlier refinances and purchases made during the pandemic era have kept would-be sellers wedded to their much lower mortgage rates.”

Home prices in Queens, on the other hand, have gone up. The median sale price for an apartment in Queens rose to $700,000, up 0.7 percent from the third quarter of 2022, according to the report. Listing inventory in this borough grew for the first time in over a year. More than 5,000 apartments appeared on the market in Queen, representing a 3.7 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2021. 

With 3,108 sales, activity in Queens was down 23.7 percent from the previous quarter and 17.6 percent from 2021. Homes listed for sale in this borough also spent more time on the market before going into contract. An average listing stayed on the market for 62 days, up from 57 days in the third quarter of 2022. Bidding wars made up nearly one-fourth of all closings. 

Resources:

“Elliman Report: Brooklyn Sales 4Q 2022,” (Miller Samuel Inc., 2023)

“Elliman Report: Queens Sales 4Q 2022,” (Miller Samuel Inc., 2023)

“Home Prices Level Out in Brooklyn, But Bidding Wars Increase With Drop in New Listings,” by Anna Bradley-Smith (Brownstoner, 2023)

“Brooklyn home prices dropped in Q4 but were still the third-highest on record,” by Eddie Small (Crain’s New York, 2023)

“Brooklyn’s median price slips but sellers are doing better than in Manhattan,” by Jennifer White Karp (Brick Underground, 2023)

“Brooklyn’s Luxury Segment Remains Resilient Against Market Slowdown,” by Fang Block (Mansion Global, 2023)