Have you ever looked at great piece of art, something that absolutely delights and captivates you, and wanted to bring it home; only to then realize that you wouldn’t have space for it in your Manhattan apartment? While we are sure that this thought must have occurred to many of you, we are also pretty sure that this feeling has come in your minds more than once! Think back on all those great artworks you liked and craved, but had to say no to them only because of the question: “Where are we going to keep it in our home?”

When Lehman Brothers went bankrupt in the fall of 2008, perhaps no neighborhood was more greatly affected than Harlem. The ill-timed flurry of construction in Harlem that preceded Lehman’s collapse left about a dozen new developments stranded, so to speak. In other words,  those new luxury condominiums either on the market or about to be on the market at that time suddenly had no buyers and a bleak future. So, almost overnight, the new construction revival in Harlem created a glut of luxury condos that no one wanted to live in. This unfortunate turn of events had defined Harlem real estate for the past few years, but it looks like the damage wrought by those events has finally abated: in the third quarter of this year 150 condos sold in Harlem, marking the fifth quarter in a row where condo sales in Harlem exceeded 100 units. Despite the odds, sales of new luxury condos now exceed pre-Lehman levels. Granted, this is due to greatly reduced inventory and an extreme shortage of quality inventory elsewhere in Manhattan, but this recovery is still impressive, and it spells good news the Manhattan luxury real estate market as a whole.

After the 2008 market crash the prices of one-bedrooms and studios recovered fairly quickly, but the two-bedroom has held out until now. According to The Real Deal, overall inventory of apartments has grown by 13.4 percent since March, but the inventory of two-beds has grown much slower. True to the laws of economics, the ever-present high demand of Manhattan real estate coupled with a low supply means that prices of Manhattan two-bedrooms has hit a new peak -- and the competition to secure one is getting fierce. The New York Times interviewed Tracie Hamersley, a senior vice president of Citi Habitats, whose two-bedroom listing in Murray Hill closed at the asking price after only a single week on the market. It was the buyer’s third attempt at securing a two-bedroom.

A newly released report lists the past season's most popular New York City new condos, based on contracts inked. The number one building? Harlem's beautiful and LEED-certified Kalahari. With good reason! We can't say enough about this building. Other highly desirable buildings in which we have condos for sale...