There aren’t many players in the NYC real estate industry who are complaining nowadays. The market has been steadily improving since the beginning of the year. According to the real estate data firm Urban Digs, there were 2,856 Manhattan homes under contract in the first eight months of the year, about 30% more than the same time in 2011. Also there were 5,292 active listings, or about 22 percent less than a year ago.
New developments brought to market recently are being sold at the fastest pace in the last four years, and inventory is going down noticebly.
I would not be surprised to see the next six months bringing the next wave of price increases that will push the new bar higher for Manhattan real estate across most kinds of properties.
In certain segments of the market, specifically the super luxury, this has already happened.

Land buying wave
The land that developers buy in order to build buildings upon it is increasing in price.
A study from the commercial brokerage Massey Knakal shows that in Manhattan the price per buildable square foot went up to $323.43 this year from $308.32 last year. Brooklyn went up to $117.71 from $113.24 in the same period.
According to the website PropertyShark, there were 275 sales of vacant properties in New York City in the first six months of 2012. At this pace by the end of the year, we might end up with about 550 land buys, a number that is the closest to the record high of 620 that was registered in 2008.
This trend is due in large part to the availability of construction financing. On the magazine The Real Deal, the developer Abraham Hidary admits, “Without a construction loan, land is worth nothing”.
There are two drivers of this new land buying wave: 1) the rental market comeback is at record highs as of the past spring; and 2) condominium average prices are hitting steadily at $2,000 or more per square foot in many areas of Manhattan.
According to Massey Knakal, the most expensive land purchase this year was the one of a parking lot at 24 Varick Street, also known as 11 North Moore. The deal closed in June for $47.7 million, or $707 per buildable square foot. The Real Deal reported that the new owners have planned a 20 unit condominium on the site. You can guess what the asking price per square foot will be!

18 Gramercy Park: can the Zeckendorfs pull the magic again?
Brothers Arthur and William Lie Zeckendorf are the ones that developed the most luxurious  and successful condo in Manhattan few years ago: 15 Central Park West.
Now they are about to launch their new gem: 18 Gramercy Park.
New projects (this one is a condominium conversion) are somewhat rare in this tiny slip of the island. There are only 34 addresses sorrounding Gramercy Park, which is actually the only private one in the City. It is also a historic district, and many buildings are landmarked. The residences, mostly co-ops come with an exclusive key to the park, which dates to 1831 when Samuel Ruggles divided this land into lots and created the park and the key system.
18 Gramercy is aiming at surpassing previous sales records at the posh enclave. The majority of the total 16 units are 4,200 square foot full-floor four bedrooms ($14 to $18 million will be the price range), there is a smaller two bedroom ($9.25 million) and a duplex penthouse ($42 million).
If the penthouse sells for somewhat near the asking, then it will be the priciest sale in Gramercy by far.

Mad Men
Adam Pincus, on The Real Deal, brings us back to 1950 to remember what happend this month back then. The young advertising firm Hewitt, Ogilvy, Beson and Mather, Inc leased one floor in a new building rising on Madison Avenue 62 years ago in September. The deal helped solidify Madison Avenue as the fulcrum of the brash ad industry of a country that was getting ready for one of its most impressive periods of growth.
Ogilvy went on to become the giant of today, but it wasn’t the first to eye Madison Ave. In the 20s and 30s, with the advent of radio, prominent agencies took space there. This was some time before the award winning show “Mad Men”, portraying the advertising industry in the 60s, was to become a public favorite.

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Warmest Regards,
Riccardo Ravasini