The subprime mortgage meltdown may be the hot topic in business sections all across this great land, but as far as Manhattan's luxury market goes, the first lash has yet to be bat. Or has it? This month's Luxury Letter from Leonard Steinberg, Hervé Senequier and their team at Elliman briefly addresses the credit crunch, reading, "Our view is that the Luxury real estate market in New York City should only be minimally impacted." Still, minimal impact is nothing to thumb your monocle at. The September edition of The Real Deal takes a closer look, and reports that the financial sector "jitters" could translate to the high-end real estate market: "Wall Street bonuses are expected to shrink, dimming prospects for a vigorous first-quarter sales spike." Elliman superbroker Dolly Lenz has already seen a dropoff in interest in homes selling for more than $15 million, and getting her to admit to any sort of dropoff is enough cause for some concern. But don't worry, those buyers will just muscle in to the price range just below. There are also reports of co-ops looking more closely into their potential Wall Street buyers, toughening up an already tough process.
The topics at hand: What's the situation out there? Reports from the luxury trenches (i.e., open houses) are much appreciated. Will the luxury market take a gigantic hit if this winter's bonus season turns out to be less than spectacular? Will formerly high-flying finance peeps aim lower and suck up all the "affordable" housing?
· Luxury Letter September 2007 [luxuryloft.com]
· What's next for the high end? [The Real Deal]
· Curbed Roundtable: August State o' the Market Report [Curbed]