In March, Manhattan saw 551 condominium sales, a 6% increase from February sales. The volume saw an increase of 5% at 880 million and the average sale price was $1,597,343, down only 1% from last month. The average square footage for a unit reached 1,108, a decrease of 3%, while the average price per square foot increased by 1% at $1,285.

Gaining in popularity are units with more than three bedrooms and square footage greater than 3,000. Many buyers are also seeking to combine units for additional space and developers are feeding this hunger by joining units prior to the request to do so. Developers of 170 East End Ave. are a good example of the decision to construct lines to be joined with other lines at initial construction. Kelly Mack, president of Corcoran Sunshine Marketing, remarked, “One of the best ways to [protect developers from risk] is to take smaller residencies and look at them as ways to ultimately do combination units – that’s the beauty of the combination.” Buildings still under construction, such as The Brompton, 10 West End Ave., The Lucida and The Rushmore, also have invested in sizable combinations. Tim Crowley, managing director at FLAnk, admits to not knowing just how considerable the market from $5 million to $15 million was in Manhattan. FLAnk’s new development at 385 W. 12th St. has already sold seven of its 12 luxury townhouses, offering a range from 2,526 to 4,500 square feet at $5.5 million to $13.5 million. The developer is also following this new trend by giving buyers the opportunity to combine two townhouses into one five-bedroom triplex with 8,391 square feet at an offering price of $17,050,000. FLAnk’s next project continues along the same lines; they will convert a West Village nursing home at 607 Hudson St. into 10 condominiums with extensive square footage. The range offered will be 3,500 square feet to 10,000 square feet, setting a new precedent for future real estate in Manhattan with completion set for 2010.

Average apartment price in April 2007

The greatest sales in March occurred at The Sheffield, located at 322 W. 57th St., selling a total of 122 units. Receiving slightly above average sales for the month with 37 sales was 340 E. 23rd St., Grammercy Star Condominiums. Chatham 44 at 464 W. 44th St. received 22 sales. The Avery at 100 Riverside Blvd., 595 West End Ave., and A Building at 425 E. 23rd St. each received 20 sales. The most favored unit type sought by buyers in March was the one-bedroom with 222 sales. Two-bedrooms received 144 sales; three-bedrooms had 55 sales; studios received 85; and, other bedroom sales with units offering four or more bedrooms received 45 buyers. Sales were also up across the board throughout Manhattan neighborhoods in March. Midtown East received 133 sales, Midtown West (127), Upper West Side (123), Upper East Side (40), South of 14th Street (102), and North of 96th Street (26).