What to Expect From Brooklyn Real Estate in 2023

The Brooklyn real estate market picked up considerably during the second half of 2022, giving experts hope that it will stay that way once the calendar turns to 2023.

While there remains some uncertainty in all aspects of the economy due to the lingering pandemic, there’s a general expectation that the NYC real estate market will continue to stabilize after COVID-19 struck the city hard.

A lot of factors point to buyers and renters returning to buy houses for sale in Park Slope after many people left the city during the pandemic. The reasons for the exodus included people wanting to find more comfortable homes in suburbs and smaller towns farther away from Brooklyn. Some residents also felt unsafe living in crowded urban neighborhoods and others left after losing their jobs.

The economy is beginning to stabilize and many businesses and companies have called employees back to the office or are finalizing plans to do so.  It’s inevitable that people will eventually return to Brooklyn, including to lofts in Williamsburg, and some are coming back now. Many people would like to get as close to pre-pandemic normal as possible, and part of that process is getting into the real estate market in a vibrant neighborhood like Williamsburg, which fronts the East River.

Now that 2023 is here, it’s a good time for buyers to return to Brooklyn, including the easy-going Park Slope neighborhood. Some of the factors that are giving them the chance to get into apartments and single-family homes include a rising inventory of available properties and mortgage interest rates that remain at near-historic lows.

There is also the expectation that people who put off plans to move to New York City, specifically Brooklyn, during the pandemic are now planning to do so. That influx of buyers will increase the demand for townhomes in Williamsburg.

Why Brooklyn?

Brooklyn has a completely different vibe than Manhattan, with several distinctive neighborhoods that range from trendy and hip to old-fashioned. The borough is known for everything from bridges — starting with the classic Brooklyn Bridge — Coney Island amusement park, great pizza, and ample parks and community spaces.

With 2.7 million residents, Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City’s five boroughs. It is coextensive with Kings County, the most populous county in New York state as well as the second-most densely populated county in the United States.

Neighborhoods

There are many great neighborhoods in Brooklyn, which really does have something for everyone, including families and professionals. Besides Park Slope and Williamsburg, other popular neighborhoods in Brooklyn include Bay Ridge, Carroll Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Heights, Flatbush, and Dumbo.

Home prices

The median price of residences in Brooklyn, including homes for sale in Park Slope, is $733,289. That represents an increase of 5.6% during the past year. The median has been going up each of the last several months. Of course, homebuyers will find that some Brooklyn residences can be purchased for less than the median, while others can cost considerably more than the median as it’s an average sales price. 

Renters

Real estate experts who track trends in the Brooklyn market say that the apartment rental market came back strong during the third quarter of 2021. That helped bring down the vacancy rate, which jumped significantly during the height of the pandemic in 2020. That was when building owners were left empty flats after tenants chose to ride out the pandemic elsewhere, and people who had planned to move to the city delayed those plans.

The cost of rentals in Williamsburg is rising and landlords are no longer offering incentives to lure new tenants.

A good time to buy

Zillow.com expects home prices to rise nationally in 2023 as people become more comfortable returning to big cities, including the Big Apple. More people are getting vaccinated and companies have instituted social distancing and other safety measures to make workplaces safer for those who have been called back to the office.

Now is a good time for buyers to perhaps catch a bargain or two in Williamsburg real estate before the market gets a chance to take off. Prices are expected to remain higher than pre-pandemic levels. That factor, coupled with low mortgage interest rates, should motivate buyers to act now rather than wait and get shut out if the market gets hot all of a sudden.

Hire an agent

The best way to figure out the current state of the Brooklyn real estate market is to hire an experienced Park Slope realtor who has a sense of what’s going on throughout the borough. As you interview agents, find out the strategies they used to ride out the market downturn after the pandemic struck and what their strategies are for assisting buyers in the freshening market.

You can ask agents for details of their successes during the past two years when the market went through its valleys and peaks. Be looking for an agent you can trust and who will communicate well during the process. Those factors are important because things could move fast if you find a great Park Slope property and want to submit an offer. You’ll need to trust your agent’s advice since they have seen a lot during the last two years.

Once you’ve settled on an agent, it’s time to strategize on finding a property. Let your agent know what kind of home you want and how much you can comfortably spend. Be specific about types of real estate, whether you want to buy an apartment or a single-family home, and in what neighborhood. Your agent will then take that information and come up with a list of townhomes in Williamsburg to view.

If you’re ready to jump into the market for Williamsburg luxury homes, let Travis Pham show you how he’s forged a reputation as one of the top agents in the city.