No Surprise: Manhattan Real Estate Inventory Rises

The NY Times reveals that the number of Manhattan apartments going into contract or with accepted offers has "plunged by 20%" in October, when compared with September, and by 62% compared with October 2007: "There were 577 listings with signed contracts or accepted offers this October, compared with 1,588 a year earlier." Also: the number of Manhattan listings is at its "highest level in several years, up 20 percent since August and 33 percent since October 2007," per data from appraisal firm Miller Samuel. Miller Samuel's Jonathan Miller doesn't think the decline in prices will be reflected in data until next year (due to the time between signing a contract and closing); plus he expects "owners of more expensive apartments to give large discounts off the original asking prices" (hey, if Hugh Jackman and Justin Timberlake can get bargains...).