Manhattan Market Report: September 28 – October 4, 2026

Manhattan’s luxury market snapped back hard last week: thirty contracts were signed on homes priced at $4 million and above, thirteen more than the week before and the first time the market has touched the 30-contract benchmark since mid-June. Condos led the way, outselling co-ops 21 to 7, with Downtown and the East Side driving most of the activity — 16 and 11 signed contracts respectively, while Midtown stayed quiet. The week’s standout was a 9S at 70 Vestry Street, a 4,355-square-foot, four-bedroom condo designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects that went into contract asking $34 million, followed by a $19.995 million sponsor sale at The Cortland on West 22nd Street. Total weekly asking volume reached $245.7 million, with a median ask of $6.2 million and buyers negotiating an average discount of just 5% off last asking price.

The pickup wasn’t limited to the top of the market. Citywide, UrbanDigs tracked 182 new contracts across all price tiers for the week of October 2 — a 61% jump from the week before, even as active inventory climbed to 6,027 listings, the most since spring. The luxury tier’s $4M+ share of that citywide contract flow nearly doubled week over week, a signal that well-priced product at every level is finding buyers. Inventory is aging unevenly, too: more than half of all active Manhattan listings have now sat on the market 90 or more days, and that stale share climbs to two-thirds once you get above $5 million — which gives patient luxury buyers real room to negotiate even in a week this strong for signed deals.

Financing conditions are a growing headwind behind all of this. The 30-year conforming mortgage rate jumped to 7.36% this week — its third straight week above 7% and the highest print of 2026 — while the 30-year jumbo rate climbed to 7.33%. That pushed the jumbo-conforming spread negative for the first time this cycle, an unusual edge that lets buyers financing above conforming limits lock in slightly cheaper money than entry-level borrowers. Taken together, it was still the strongest week of the fall for Manhattan real estate at every price point — welcome news for sellers who have priced correctly, and a reminder for buyers that real leverage exists, especially among the 90+ day listings, even as rates keep climbing.