Wait. What? Williamsburg Real Estate Prices Plummet?


So this is confusing. All you ever seem to hear about are the stratospheric rises in Brooklyn real estate prices, especially in Williamsburg. But DNAInfo reports today that contrary to what you and me and everyone we know thinks to be true, “Home buyers this spring found far better deals than at the end of the year—with median sales prices on new Williamsburg condos plummeting by a third since the end of 2012.” So we can all afford to move into the Edge now? Is that what this means?
Not really, no. North Williamsburg is still pretty expensive and much of the decrease in prices can be attributed to the fact that a lot of the condo development has been happening in South and East Williamsburg, where the prices are dramatically lower. And these statistics are just related to condos, which are only a fraction of what’s available in Williamsburg anyway. But it’s still always interesting to note how drastically different prices are even when the real estate offerings are within the same neighborhood. After all, even when it comes to rentals “average rents [are] $1,600 more in North than in South Williamsburg.” So I guess it’s not that Williamsburg is getting cheaper, it’s more that there is more inventory available in the less expensive parts of the neighborhood, so that’s what’s getting snapped up. Which, in turn, probably means that those areas will gradually become more expensive too. And then literally nowhere in North Brooklyn will be affordable. Which is how it kind of feels already. Man, this turned out to be a depressing post.
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