Dear Clients and Friends,

January 2025 saw a simultaneous increase in new listings and modest decline in contracts signed compared to the prior month. This was unsurprising as sellers generally start listing in the latter portion of January with those same properties later converting to ‘contracts signed’. Despite the January uptick in new listings, available NYC residential inventory still remains at the lowest level in the last 9 years. Property owners that are considering selling would be wise to take advantage of buyers’ hunger for new product, as well as their greater clarity on personal finances now that 2024 bonus/comp numbers have been released.

There were 82 contracts signed in January for properties above $4 million, a decline from the prior month, though broadly in line with seasonal trends. Brooklyn notably had its first $20M+ contract signed in 2025 (an off-market Brooklyn Heights townhouse asking $22M), further solidifying its desirability across all price-points.

In other dramatic news, Spitzer Enterprises and Winter Properties are quietly marketing 800 Fifth Avenue (a luxury rental building located between 61-62nd Streets) for sale as a potential ground-up new construction opportunity to build approximately 350K square feet of for-sale residential. It’s not hyperbole to say that this represents one of the best-located condo development sites for sale in decades given the complete lack of new residential construction along Fifth Avenue’s toniest residential stretch. The Prime Upper East Side corridor from 59^th street to the mid-60’s stands poised to become a global residential destination with additional condo and retail developments currently underway by Related and Extell at 625 and 655 Madison.

Lastly, Republican and Democratic members of the House of Representatives are in active talks to raise the $10,000 SALT deduction cap, which would particularly benefit higher income and property tax states like New York.