At the beginning of 2020, the real estate market in New York City was still gaining steam. Sales prices had leveled off, but the rental market was strong. Then the pandemic turned everything upside down.
By the end of the year, the median rent in Manhattan had fallen to a level not seen since 2010, and hundreds of thousands of the most vulnerable renters faced the prospect of eviction. But sales were finally picking up, especially in Brooklyn and Queens, and in the suburbs, they rose steeply before cooling off. Still, deep discounts were the norm at the high end, and new developments across the city faced serious hurdles.