The median sale price for Brooklyn residential real estate hit an all-time high in the first quarter of 2025, reaching $995,000, according to Douglas Elliman. That’s a 4.7% increase year over year, and a 0.6% rise from the previous quarter.
Average sale prices also climbed sharply to $1.28 million — a 7.7% gain compared to the same period last year.
Inventory Growth Signals a Slight Market Slowdown
There are, however, indicators that the Brooklyn real estate market could be slowing — albeit slowly.
Last quarter, the pace of inventory growth outstripped the pace of sales. And homes took 75 days to sell on average — slightly longer than in the fourth quarter of 2024 (72 days), but still faster than in the first quarter of 2024 (79 days).
Listing inventory rose 9.2% year over year to 2,635 units, marking the fourth consecutive annual increase. This growing supply could lead to more competitive pricing opportunities in future quarters.
Cash Buyers Continue to Dominate
But Brooklyn continues to buck broader regional and national real estate trends. The reason? Cash.
Cash buyers accounted for 40% of all Brooklyn purchases in the first quarter. While that’s below the record-high 53.2% seen in the third quarter of 2024, it remains elevated, reflecting how Brooklyn buyers are less affected by high borrowing costs than buyers elsewhere — including nearby.
In the New York City metro area as a whole, cash-only buyers made up 33.4% of home purchases, according to Redfin.
Well-heeled buyers from across the world are buying into Brooklyn neighborhoods with cash-only purchases, making areas like Clinton Hill and Prospect Heights the hottest neighborhoods in the country, according to Redfin.
Brooklyn’s Luxury and New Development Markets Set New Highs
Brooklyn’s luxury market has also reached new milestones. The luxury entry threshold rose to a record $2,325,000, while the average luxury sale price edged up to $3.49 million. The median luxury price remained steady year over year at $2.9 million.
New development sales also surged. The median sale price for new developments jumped 27.3% year over year to $1.25 million, while the average price per square foot climbed to $1,300.
Brooklyn’s brownstone market also saw a surge in activity, with closed sales jumping 62.9% year over year, even as median prices declined slightly to $2.7 million.
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