Condo Bid for New Devs

Before putting $1 of your presumably hard earned money down,, it sounds like you need to do some serious research. Take that from someone who is in the situation you are contemplating getting yourself involved in.

Be very very careful with this. Many new devs are still advertising that they will not negotiate or budge on prices, but at the same time given the recent overwhelming drop in sales, one has to wonder how long this will last. Personally, I would wait a month or two and see which way the wind blows.

Many new development condos are taking offers below ask - the question is how much below ask. This depends on many factors, relating to the neighborhood, the building, whether they have already dropped the asking price on that unit, how long has it been on the market, and, probably, whether you need significant financing - they might be more interested a buyer who can pay all-cash.

10% below ask is likely to be a reasonable offer, but I don't see the harm in offering even less than that - if they say no, then you are free to increase your offer. If they say yes, then (maybe) you got a decent deal. Very simply, this is a buyer's market. Any seller who refuses to negotiate will not be selling their properties.

a few short sales in buildings that have already started closings but not sold out original product will be the pressure that breaks new development's back.

I am considering this too, and am thinking 20% below ask for my building. But this is based on comps in the neighborhood. The real question is what comparable properties are selling for, not how much below ask you are offering. Asking prices are simply a negotiating tactic.

Make sure you ask for a detail outline of the your closing costs...

obv not knowing all the details of neighborhood, development etc, or your situation. Buying in new constructiuon now is very risky. there is the risk of prices dopping further (even beyond whatever discount you get) as well as the risk of living in a partially empty bldg, or one with a bunch of renters living in units that don't sell, or of the developer going bankrupt and you having to cover more of the common charges.
As mentioned above it doesn't seem that you have too much to lose by waiting if your particular situation allows that
Developers have not generally lowered prices much. I have heard of 10-25% discounts off ask but again that probably comes w/ a lot of risk
Also I think its safe to say that things will get worse when each bldg is ready to close and many people holding contracts do not close
I guess what i'm saying is that you should carefully examine the risk/reward of whatever deal you get.
If it was me, again being general, i would be looking in a bldg that had already started closings, make sure most of the conrtract holders were proceeding with closing, that at least 70% of units were under contract, essentially all of the ammenities were complete, AT LEAST a 30% discount from original selling price (which was likely the "top") as well as transfer fees etc
and as far as i know this doesn't exist---yet

if you want to see what will happen to new development prices, follow along at the edges for a bit. i'd suggest Central Harlem, maybe Chinatown. 2056 Fifth Avenue is a good example of what could happen to prices, but the reductions thus far don't seem to be saving the development.