Manhattan's luxury housing market slowed to a crawl heading into Labor Day Weekend, with buyers signing just 13 contracts for homes asking $4 million or more — a sharp pullback that produced the lowest weekly asking-price sales volume, $66 million, recorded since September 2023. Not a single deal from the week cracked the $10 million mark, and the top two contracts were both New York City properties priced in the $6 million range.
The figures come from the closely watched weekly Olshan Luxury Market Report, according to The Real Deal, whose report on the period from August 31 through September 6 found 13 signed contracts on homes asking $4 million or higher. That total fell well below the decade average of 16 deals for the holiday week and marked a steep drop from the 24 contracts inked just one week earlier, a rebound Hoodline previously reported was fueled by a $20.5 million sale of a three-bedroom condo on the 68th floor at Central Park Tower. September is typically the slowest month of the year for high-end Manhattan contract signings, and the $66 million weekly total was the weakest since a roughly $45 million week in September 2023.
A Tribeca Warehouse Loft Tops the List
The week's priciest signed contract was a duplex at 61 North Moore Street in Tribeca, asking $6.5 million. Unit 3W spans 2,900 square feet with four bedrooms and four bathrooms, according to the same report. The building itself dates to 1915, per The Real Deal's reporting, though Sotheby's International Realty listing materials describe the structure as a former commercial warehouse.
The unit features 11-foot ceilings, exposed cast-iron columns, wooden beams and a balcony, but the building carries no amenities. Listing agents Brad Ingalls, Brendan O'Rourke, Emrah Akyildiz and Gil Khoury of Sotheby's International Realty handled the sale.
Robert A.M. Stern Tower Lands Second-Priciest Deal
The week's second-most-expensive contract was for a condo at 181 East 65th Street on the Upper East Side, asking $6.2 million. Unit 18B spans roughly 2,200 square feet with three bedrooms and three bathrooms, and features a terrace and a chef's kitchen after undergoing a gut renovation. The unit entered the market in July 2026 and had last traded for $5.8 million, per the report.
The building, known as the Chatham, was developed by Related Companies in 2000 and includes 93 condominiums across 32 stories, with doormen, a fitness center and a garage among its amenities. Designed by Robert A.M. Stern, the tower has a red-brick and limestone facade, according to Related Companies. Listing agents Jennifer Wang, Charlie Pigott and George Pigott of Corcoran represented the deal.
A Broader Pipeline Squeeze
Of the 13 contracted homes, six were condos, six were co-ops and one was a condop. Only one pending deal involved a new-development unit, a scarcity that fits a broader pattern: Manhattan's luxury new-construction pipeline has tightened dramatically, with overall inventory down nearly 40 percent year-over-year in 2026 and zero new condo launches recorded across the borough in April, as Hoodline has reported.
According to the NYC Comptroller, New York City has 450,000 occupied apartments in cooperative buildings and another 318,000 in condominiums, together accounting for 22% of the city's housing.
The 13 homes carried an average asking price of $5.1 million and a median asking price of $5.2 million. The typical contracted home spent nearly a year on the market and was ultimately discounted by 6 percent from its original ask, underscoring how even in a thin week, sellers are having to negotiate.
New Taxes Add Friction for Buyers
New York has a progressive mansion tax schedule, according to Reinvent NY. Separately, New York City's new annual pied-à-terre tax took effect on July 1, 2026, with the surcharge reaching 1.3 percent at its highest tier for properties valued above $25 million, per Cole Schotz. The tax, championed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, is projected to raise $500 million annually.
Context From a Stronger Year
The pre-Labor Day slump stands in contrast to the market's recent trajectory. In full-year 2025, Manhattan buyers signed 1,436 contracts for residential properties priced at $4 million or higher, an 11 percent increase over 2024, Hoodline has reported. Boutique, independently owned brokerages captured $2.6 billion of that deal volume across roughly 1,000 transactions last year, carving out 11 percent of top-25 brokerage market share by specializing in high-end sales, according to Hoodline's earlier coverage of the city's smaller firms. The Olshan Luxury Market Report, produced by Olshan Realty president Donna Olshan, tracks signed Manhattan contracts on homes asking $4 million or more each week.
