Luxury real estate contracts in Manhattan surpassing pre-pandemic levels

A new report indicates a 60% increase in contracts signed on luxury homes in the Big Apple during the first quarter of 2021 as compared to the same pre-pandemic time period in 2020. The findings, released Monday from Olshan Realty, suggest that buyers are banking on Manhattan's comeback.

Indeed, there were 41 contracts signed for homes priced at $4 million or above during the week of March 15, bringing the year-to-date total to 343. During the same time frame last year, 215 such contracts had been signed before the Big Apple faced city-wide shutdowns starting on March 22. During the shutdown period, only 53 contracts for luxury homes were signed at the $4 million or more mark, according to the report. At then end of March 2020, and into the first three weeks of April, just two contracts were signed on higher-priced homes every week.