New York, New York Housing Market

How much can you negotiate in New York?

Only 34 out of every 100 homes for sale have found a buyer. The other 66 are still waiting. Your offer may be the only one on the table. Few sellers are dropping their price. Asking prices are holding firm. Your discount will come from one stale listing, not from the whole market.

A typical New York home takes 68 days to find a buyer. Half of them take even longer. Those sellers are paying to own a house they want to sell. Search for homes listed 90+ days ago. There are 6,665 homes for sale in New York. That is 1.6 times the tightest month on record, but below the peak of 8,533. Supply is steady against last year.

What to do about it

• Start in 10037, 10039, and 10069. Those are the three softest ZIP codes in New York.
• Filter for homes listed 90+ days ago that have already cut their price.
• Offer below the reduced price.
• Keep your inspection and financing contingencies.
• In 10037 only 32 out of 100 homes have a buyer. You can lose a few offers there and still win.

Is now a good time to buy in New York?

Asking prices are 33.4% below their Mar 2017 peak. You are not buying at the top. Prices stopped falling about a year ago. They are flat now. Waiting will not get you a cheaper house. It might still get you a more motivated seller. New York prices rose in just 36 of 108 months. Prices here mostly do not grow. Buy this market for rent income, not for appreciation.

The discount is already here. It is not getting bigger. Buy now while sellers are still weak. Waiting for a lower price stopped working a year ago.

What numbers should you underwrite a New York deal with?

• Price growth to assume — -1.3%/yr. 1 year: +0.3% · 5 years: 0.0% · ten years: -1.3%. The five-year and ten-year rates agree. That is a durable trend, not a boom artifact. It is a fair long-run input. Measure growth per square foot. New York median list price fell 3.2% a year, but price per square foot fell 1.3%. Per-foot prices held up better than the median. The gap is smaller homes, not a steeper decline. The one-year rate is a timing signal. It is not an underwriting input.
• Months of carrying cost — 3. A typical home takes 68 days to sell. Budget that long when you exit or refinance.
• Odds you cut your price to sell — 1 in 15. About 7% of homes on the New York market right now have already cut their asking price. Assume you are one of them when you sell. Do not underwrite an exit at your asking price.
• Comp on this, not median price — $1,534/sqft. The typical New York listing shrank from 1,482 to 1,333 sqft since Jul 2016. So median price hides real growth: -12% per sqft versus -27% on the median. Comp on median price and you will overpay for small homes.
• Competition when you exit — -2%. The number of homes for sale barely moved in a year. Today's comps are a fair guide to your exit.

Is New York a buyer's or seller's market in 2026?

Yes, if you negotiate. Buyers have the upper hand in New York right now. 0.34 out of every 100 homes for sale have a buyer, 7% of sellers have cut their price, and a typical home takes 68 days to sell.

Are New York home prices going up or down?

Asking prices are 33.4% below their Mar 2017 peak. You are not buying at the top. Prices stopped falling about a year ago. They are flat now. Waiting will not get you a cheaper house. It might still get you a more motivated seller.

What price growth should I assume for New York?

-1.3%/yr. 1 year: +0.3% · 5 years: 0.0% · ten years: -1.3%. The five-year and ten-year rates agree. That is a durable trend, not a boom artifact. It is a fair long-run input. Measure growth per square foot. New York median list price fell 3.2% a year, but price per square foot fell 1.3%. Per-foot prices held up better than the median. The gap is smaller homes, not a steeper decline. The one-year rate is a timing signal. It is not an underwriting input.

How fast are homes selling in New York?

A typical New York home takes 68 days to find a buyer. Half of them take even longer. Those sellers are paying to own a house they want to sell. Search for homes listed 90+ days ago.

Which New York ZIP code has the most negotiating room?

10037. Only 32 out of 100 homes there have a buyer, 21% have cut their price, and a typical home takes 131 days to sell.