Here's Where Homes Are Selling Fastest in NYC, Defying the Slow Market

The New York City sales market is in the midst of a slowdown. Relatively high prices and small price cuts are warding off potential buyers, causing home inventory to pile up. NYC homes stayed on the market for a median of 83 days in the third quarter of 2019 — five days longer than last year, and the longest average since 2012.

But while homes are staying on the market longer in most parts of the city, that’s not true everywhere. We looked into where homes are selling fastest in NYC, to understand where buyers may still face heightened competition. These areas are defying the broader slowdown in the NYC real estate market — and they’re all in the outer boroughs.

Where NYC Homes Are Selling the Fastest

During the third quarter, homes in South Queens — neighborhoods like Jamaica, Ozone Park and Richmond Hill — spent the shortest median period on the market, at just 60 days. South Queens is one of the most affordable areas in the city, with a median recorded sales price of $545,000 in the third quarter, 5% higher than a year prior. Demand for these neighborhoods still remains high, even though they may be a long subway ride from Midtown.

Submarket	Neighborhoods Within	Median Days on Market
South Queens	Jamaica, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven	60
Northwest Brooklyn	Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene	70
Northwest Queens	Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside, Ditmars-Steinway	70
Central Queens	Jackson Heights, Forest Hills, Woodside, Corona, Ridgewood	71
Northeast Queens	Flushing, Kew Gardens, Whitestone, Oakland Gardens	71

Meanwhile, homes in Northwest Brooklyn (Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill) and Northwest Queens (Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside) spent a median of 70 days on the market during the third quarter. That’s down one day from last year in Northwest Brooklyn, and down more than two weeks (17 days) in Northwest Queens. While these areas are pricey compared to other parts of their boroughs, value-hungry buyers are still finding them attractive.

Where Homes Stay on the Sales Market Longest

On the opposite end of the spectrum, many NYC sellers find their homes sitting on the market for months at a time. The five submarkets where homes are staying on the market longest are all in Manhattan, the city’s most expensive borough.

Submarket	Neighborhoods Within	Median Days on Market
Midtown	Central Park South, Midtown East, Midtown West	103
Upper East Side	Lenox Hill, Yorkville, Carnegie Hill, Upper East Side	99
Upper Manhattan	Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, West Harlem, Central Harlem, East Harlem	97
Downtown	Tribeca, SoHo, Financial District, Chelsea, Flatiron, West Village	90
Upper West Side	Lincoln Square, Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, Manhattan Valley	89

In Midtown Manhattan, homes stay on the market for the longest average period in the city: 103 days, 9 days longer than last year’s median. Rounding out the slowest-sellers list are all four other Manhattan submarkets, which include popular neighborhoods like SoHo, Chelsea, the Upper West Side, and Lenox Hill.

Buyers considering any of these areas have the ability to be picky and patient in order to find the perfect home. There’s lots of inventory, and it stays on the market for a significant chunk of time, giving buyers plenty of opportunity to negotiate.

Areas Where Days on Market Decreased

While 60% of submarkets in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens saw an uptick in their median number of days spent on the market, in some areas, homes actually sold faster than they did last year. Three out of the five submarkets on this list are in the outer boroughs, where, again, many buyers are finding optimal value.

Submarket	Neighborhoods Within	Difference in Median Days on Market
Northwest Queens	Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside, Ditmars-Steinway	17 Days Faster
East Brooklyn	Bed-Stuy, Bushwick, Crown Heights, East New York	11 days faster
Upper East Side	Lenox Hill, Yorkville, Carnegie Hill, Upper East Side	10 days faster
Upper West Side	Lincoln Square, Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, Manhattan Valley	9 days faster
Northwest Brooklyn	Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene	1 Day Faster

In both the Upper East and Upper West sides of Manhattan, the median recorded sales price dropped from a year prior, by 2% and 17%, respectively. Parallel to what we found in our latest Market Reports, these figures, calculated using data on home sales that closed, show that sellers who priced their homes at more realistic levels were most successful at finding buyers.

Want to see how quickly homes are selling in your neighborhood? Explore the median days on market data across the city with the StreetEasy Data Dashboard.
—
Inspired to find your next place in New York? Whether you’re looking to rent or to buy, search NYC apartments on StreetEasy.