New Market Trend

According to the Wall Street Journal we are seeing a new trend in the market lately. More Condos are being sold than Coops. This is a surprise for two reasons; first, Coops are 33% less expensive per square foot than Condos. Second, there are more Coops currently for sale than there are Condos for sale. So, why the change?

Coops usually require a larger down payment than do Condos, Coops require that the buyer use the apartment as their primary residence which in effect eliminates the opportunity for investors to buy Coops. Coops also frown on foreign buyers and in the past year or so we have seen a huge influx of foreign buyers as the Euro strengthened against the dollar.

When you purchase a Condo you are purchasing real property, similar to buying a private home and as such you can buy it for your children to live in, you can rent it out, renovate it anyway you like, live there one night a week or never at all. You can generally purchase a Condo with as little as 10% down and because all these categories of buyers can purchase a Condo and not a Coop, they usually hold their value better than a Coop.

When a professional real estate broker here in the city meets a buyer for the first time the conversation of whether they should buy a Coop or a Condo always comes up. If you are thinking of buying an apartment, give us a call, we can help you decide which is better for you.