Last Updated on October 18, 2021
Queens Real Estate Market Report 2021, courtesy of the Queens Home Team at Keller Williams Realty Landmark II. Have a question? Contact Us
Download full report at: https://www.queenshometeam.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Queens-Real-Estate-Market-Report_Q3-2021.pdf
Market Snapshot
Happy Fall y’all! So far it’s been a pretty mild October, but today it is 66 degrees and you can already feel the chill starting to brew 🙂 In terms of the real estate market, right now things seem to be moving at a standard pace.
Q3 was pretty busy for us. We put 20 new properties on the market between July and September. Of these 20 new listings, 6 of them were coops, 4 were condos, 7 were residential, 2 were rentals, and 1 was a mixed use commercial property. The residential homes and mixed use property have all gone into contract, while only 4 of the 10 apartments are currently under contract. Many of our listings have still been selling, some with multiple offers, some with just one. Apartment demand appears to be picking up now, so that’s good news for all the coop and condo owners out there.
For most of the year the apartment market has been the laggard in Queens. As you’ll see from the Q3 stats however, it looks like the tide is finally changing. Due to the Delta variant, many companies pushed the dates back on when they expect people to return to the office. So, we assume that come January, you will have a lot more people commuting into the city, and as a result, demand for apartments near transportation should continue to increase. We’ve already been hearing about many workers commuting back into the city and according to the people we’ve spoken to, trains are packed, streets are busy, and the city is vibrant like it used to be.
In terms of home sales, we are up both from 2020 levels as well as 2019 levels. Home prices are also up, both from 2020 levels as well as 2019 levels. Inventory has not changed much, hovering around 5,800 homes for sale. Month’s supply however, dropped to 6.3 months. Technically speaking, this would signify that we are in a balanced market, however, in our experience, whenever the whole county has month’s supply at 6 months or less, it typically indicates that a lot of neighborhoods are in seller’s markets. This goes in line with what we’re seeing in the field. Many neighborhoods we’re comping out do appear to be in a seller’s market or balanced market. Where we do still see oversupply of inventory is in the apartment market. If demand continues to grow for apartments, then that may change but we will have to wait and see.
All in all, the market appears to be pretty healthy right now. Mortgage rates are still low, inventory is steady, and demand appears to still be strong. Going into Q4, it feels like things are slowing down a bit, but that’s also typical of this season. According to some of our mortgage lender partners, new applications are down so that may be indicative of a cooling down as well. It also looks like we bottomed out on mortgage rates because the 10 year treasury is trending upward, Fed is finally talking about tapering and reducing their bond purchases, and the Mortgage Bankers Association’s most recent forecast estimates that mortgage rates will hit 4% in 2022 and 4.3% in 2023. That would obviously put pressure on home prices so we’ll have to wait and see how everything plays out.
We’ll keep watching the market and keep you posted on the changes we’re seeing.
QHT Listings for Sale
Month’s Supply
What is Month’s Supply? Months of supply is the measure of how many months it would take for the current inventory of homes on the market to sell, given the current pace of home sales. For example, if there are 50 homes on the market and 10 homes selling each month, there is a 5 month supply of homes for sale.
Months of supply is a good indicator of whether a particular real estate market is favoring buyers or sellers. Typically, a market that favors sellers has less than 6 months of supply, while more than 6 months of supply indicates an excess of homes for sale that favors buyers.
Month’s Supply in Queens NY
- Homes on the Market: 5,771
- Homes selling each month: 921
- Month’s Supply: 6.3
Queens Closed Home Sales
The One Key MLS reported a total of 2,945 closed home sales during the 3rd quarter of 2021. This was UP 14% from the previous quarter and UP 107.1% when compared to the same quarter last year. Specifically, sales for Residential homes were UP 93.5%, Condo sales were UP 194%, and Coop sales were UP 113% compared to the same quarter last year. For better perspective, compared to Q3 of 2019 Residential home sales were up 23.2%, condo sales were up 53.7%, and coop sales were up 39%.
Over the last 12 months, closed home sales are UP 56.6%.
Queens Pending Home Sales
As for pending home sales, the One Key MLS reported a total of 3,192 pending sales during the 3rd quarter of 2021. This was DOWN 6.2% from the previous quarter and UP 14.7% compared to the same quarter of last year. Residential pending sales were UP 3.1%, condo pending sales were up 7.8%, and coop pending sales were up 24.7%. For better perspective, compared to Q3 of 2019 Residential pending sales were up 31.1%, condo pending sales were up 97. (xanax) 9%, and coop pending sales were up 45.5%.
Queens Home Prices
At the end of Q3 2021, the median home price in Queens was $660,000, this is UP .8% from the previous quarter, and UP 10.9% compared to the same quarter of last year. Specifically, the median home price for Residential homes was UP 13.2%, median home price for condos was UP 13.8%, and the median price for coops was UP 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year.
Over the last 12 months, median home price in Queens is up 8.3%.
Interest Rates
“Last call for super-low mortgage rates? At its latest meeting, the Federal Reserve signaled that it’s about to cut the amount of bonds it buys each month, and that it also could begin to raise interest rates as early as next year.
The mortgage market interpreted that news as the beginning of the end of super-cheap mortgage rates. In the week after the Fed’s Sept. 22 meeting, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage jumped 12 basis points, to 3.17 percent, according to Bankrate’s national survey of lenders.
Will this latest run-up in rates last? No one knows that answer for certain. But housing economists and market watchers generally agree that a variety of factors — including inflation, the economic recovery and the Fed’s pace of bond buying — are lining up to nudge rates higher.
For the millions of homeowners who have yet to lock in historically low interest rates by refinancing, that money-saving opportunity soon might fade away. “It’s more likely that rates will go up than down,” says Isaac Hacamo, an assistant professor of finance at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. “If you haven’t refinanced in the past few years, I would do it now.” Read More
Click Here to see Today’s Rates
Inventory
There is currently 6.3 month’s of inventory in Queens, this is DOWN from the 7.4 month’s supply we had last quarter, and DOWN dramatically from the 14.2 month’s supply we had in the same quarter of last year. As for active listings, currently there are a total of 5,771 homes for sale in Queens. That’s DOWN from the 6,015 homes we had on the market last quarter and UP from the 6,321 homes we had on the market in the same quarter of last year.
Queens Real Estate Market Report 2021, provided by the Queens Home Team at Keller Williams Realty Landmark II. Have a Question? Contact Us anytime.
Click Here to See all Queens Housing Market Reports dating back to 2012.
Good Reads
About Us
The Queens Home Team is a group of friendly, service driven real estate agents in Queens NY. Our team members are not only experts at what they do, but more importantly, they are driven by their desire to help people. The team approach is what truly separates us from the average Queens broker, because while most agents are one person doing several things, we have several agents doing one thing, and being great at it! This ensures expertise throughout all stages of the transaction and allows us to provide the superior level of service our clients deserve. We understand that real estate is a service industry, therefore we treat it as such. Rest assured that when you work with the Queens Home Team, you’ll be in good hands, with people who care 🙂
*The opinions expressed in This Queens Real Estate Market Report are intended to supplement opinions on real estate expressed by local and national media, local Queens real estate agents and other expert sources. You should not treat any opinion expressed on this report as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of opinion. The Queens Home Team at Keller Williams Realty Landmark II does not guarantee and is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of information, and provides said information without warranties of any kind. All information presented herein is intended and should be used for educational purposes only. Nothing herein should be construed as investment advice. You should always conduct your own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice before making any investment decision. All investments involve some degree of risk. The Queens Home Team will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in this report.
There is currently 6.3 months of supply in Queens NY.
Based on the current month’s supply of housing inventory, the Queens real estate market would currently be considered a “Balanced Market”.
The answer to this question depends on your personal situation. It really comes down to your objective, your priorities, your personal circumstance, and your goals after the sale. Generally speaking, demand has started to come back, inventory is still fairly low, and interest rates are still very attractive. We anticipate that the market in Queens will be pretty balanced this year, with a slight edge in favor of buyers. Although properties are not selling as fast as they did a few years ago, they are still moving so if you are ready to sell, yes it is still a good time to sell.
Now is definitely a good time to buy a home in Queens because interest rates are low, demand is healthy, and month’s supply is above 6 months which means that it is in favor of buyers. Demand is highest for residential homes, and lower for coops and condos. If you’re in the market for a residential home, expect to face competition. If you’re in the market for an apartment, you may some leverage depending on the area.
The median price for a residential home in Queens NY is currently $860K. Median price for a condo in Queens is currently $586K. And the median price for a coop in Queens is currently $317K.
Average days on market for Queens NY is currently 83 days.
In general, if a property is priced right, a seller should be able to find a buyer within 30 – 60 days. As for contract-to-close, from the date of contract signing, it typically takes about 60-90 days to close on a residential home or condo in which the buyer is obtaining a mortgage. If it is a cash deal, then the typical timeline would be one month less (i.e. 30-60 days). It is very rare for homes and condos to close in less than 30 days unless you are selling to an investor, and when that is the case, you are usually selling for WAY below market value. As for coops, the typical timeline to close, from contract signing, is 90-120 days. If it is a cash deal, then the timeline would be one month less (i.e. 60-90 days).
Your overall selling timeline will depend on the agent you choose and how quickly they can get you an acceptable offer. Keep in mind that there are several issues that can cause delays to your transaction so it’s important that you hire an agent who has sold a lot of properties and knows how to anticipate and resolve issues quickly.
Click Here to learn more about the timeline to sell in Queens.
One of the main reasons why we Queens homeowners contact us is to find out how much their property is worth. There are several reasons why a homeowner would want to know their home’s value but no matter the reason, we are happy to oblige.
Some of the most common reasons for needing a home valuation include things like future plans to sell, probate & administration proceedings, divorces, bankruptcies, and of course plain curiosity. Many times we speak with homeowners and they have no plans of selling their home, but they would like to get an idea of what the property is worth.
Now, the way we typically answer the question, “How much is my property worth?” is by offering a Free Home Valuation. What our team does is offer two types of home valuations, one is a price range valuation (if we cannot see the property in person), and the other one is a more specific home valuation which requires us to see the property in person to assess the size, layout, condition, etc.
Price Range Valuation
A price range valuation is just what it sounds like, a price range for the value of your home based on the recent comps as well as our experience in your neighborhood. Price range valuations are good for out-of-state owners, landlords who don’t want to disturb tenants, or someone who just wants to get an idea (i.e. ballpark figure) of what their house is worth at any given time.
Most agents will not offer a price range valuation because in our industry agents are trained to schedule an appointment before sharing any price or value information. On our team however, we believe in full transparency and quality information so that people can make good decisions. As a result, we have no problem offering free price range valuations and we actually send a lot of them to Queens homeowners.
Something important to note regarding price range valuations is that the range (or spread) will largely depend on the size and type of property you own. For example, the price range offered for a 1 bedroom coop may be $50K (+/-) while the price range for a 3 family may be $200K (+/-).
The only downside to a price range valuation is that you won’t have a very specific value, but if all you want is an idea of, then this can be helpful.
Comprehensive Valuation
Now, if you want to get a really good idea or more specific valuation for your property, then that would require a property tour. What we call this is a home valuation or broker price opinion. With this type of valuation, we would come in to see the property in person so that we can assess the size, layout, condition, internal obsolescence, external obsolescence, etc. The walk through usually takes 10-15 minutes, and after seeing it, we usually sit down with the homeowner to go over everything together. This allows us to not only provide the seller with the comps, but it also allows us to explain how we come to the valuation we are providing. If a homeowner cannot meet with is for some reason, then we will typically send the analysis and valuation by email.
Broker Price Opinion Vs Independent Appraisal
In our opinion, the best way to understand the value of your property is to sit down with a local agent who can go through the comps with you and explain how they draw their estimated valuation of your property. This is different from an appraisal because when you order an independent appraisal, the appraiser will come by to see your property, then they will create a written report for you and send it to you a few days later for review. Appraisers will typically include a handful of comps in the report, and they don’t typically sit with the homeowners to explain how they came up with the appraised price that they provided. It’s very common for homeowners to disagree with an appraisal because they don’t understand the methodology, or because the appraiser may not know the area well.
The way our team likes to provide home valuations is by looking at the property in person, then sitting down with the homeowner(s) to go through all of the data (closed, pending, available, month’s supply, etc) together and ultimately offer our professional opinion of the value. The value we give is never a specific number because true “market value” is what a buyer is willing to pay for it, and without being on the market, it is impossible for us to know that. Instead, what we provide is a realistic idea of where we believe offers would come in if we were to list the property at that time. We are able to do this based on our recent sales and experience selling properties in that area.
In our experience, experienced agent valuations tend to be more accurate than appraisals because in addition to the sales data which we both have access to, a local agent can also apply their recent sales experience, knowledge of the area, and local market trends to get a better idea of the property’s current value.
If you would like to get an even better idea of your property’s current value, have 3-4 agents give you their valuation. After hearing and seeing 3-4 valuations, the value should be pretty clear as long as you are realistic and not just looking to hear the highest price 🙂
So, to answer the age old question, “How much is my house worth?”, the answer is that it depends, but if you live in Queens we would be happy to offer you a free price range valuation or a free comprehensive home valuation.
If you have any questions regarding your home’s value, or if you would like to know how much your property is worth here in Queens NY, feel free to reach out anytime.