(LONG ISLAND CITY, NY) — Long Island City home sale prices are soaring thanks to what many have dubbed the “Amazon effect.” Amazon’s new headquarters will bring 25,000 workers to the area.
The New York Post reported that last month residential sales saw a 30 percent increase compared with November 2017.
Developers are raising prices while the buyer’s market shifts to a seller’s market.
Those who had condos sitting on the market prior to Amazon’s announcement have been hit with loads of prospective buyers since the company broke the news.
Sellers and brokers have been recounting sudden bidding wars on eight-month-old listings and an overwhelming amount of interest in for-sale condos once LIC was named Amazon’s new go-to.
“On average, per week, we were seeing 35 attendees before the Amazon announcement. And after, we’re seeing 200,” Brendan Aguayo, a senior vice president and managing director of Halstead Property Development Marketing, told the New York Post.
Local price records have also been broken. The New York Post reported that a two-bedroom condo on Central Boulevard sold for more than the $2.99 million asking price after Amazon’s announcement.
As for the rental market, reports indicate a spike in prices is anticipated to come once new hires move to the area. Given that the headquarters is not set to open its doors until 2020 and renters make decisions in shorter time frames, the full Amazon effect will not be as apparent on the renters market for some time.
