The average homes in Forest Hills and Rego Park are co-ops and single-family houses, with more co-ops selling in recent months than single-family homes.
According to Prudential Douglas Elliman licensed associate broker Amy Wu, who has been serving the area for over 25 years, 212 co-ops were sold in Forest Hills and Rego Park since April 2010, compared to only 27 single-family houses.
Wu explained this discrepancy by noting that single-family homes tend to be in high demand, yet low supply in the Forest Hills and Rego Park areas, whereas there is a much larger inventory of co-ops. According to Wu, the single-family homes therefore tend to sell very quickly, typically within three to four months of being on the market. The co-ops, however, take an average of four to six months to sell because buyers have many more to choose from.
According to Prudential Douglas Elliman, the average single-family home in Forest Hills and Rego Park is in the $600,000 range, but the prices of co-ops have dropped in recent months due to the large number on the market. The higher priced co-ops are in the $400,000 to $600,000 range, said Wu.
A recent two-bedroom co-op on 99th Street in Rego Park that was listed by Prudential Douglas Elliman for $265,000 sold for $254,000 after 93 days on the market. A single-family colonial style home on Austin Street in Rego Park that was listed for $599,000 sold for $555,000 after only 54 days on the market. On the higher end of the housing market in this area, a Tudor on 68th Avenue in Forest Hills that was listed for $790,000 recently sold for $755,000 after 147 days on the market.
A high percentage of buyers looking for houses in Forest Hills and Rego Park are first time homebuyers. Due to this large number of first time buyers, Wu said, “the housing market was very active in the early part of the year in response to the Federal Stimulus Rebate.” Though the housing market softened for a few months, it has picked up again recently due to low interest rates.
Though the majority of homes in the area are smaller, Wu noted that there are pockets of multimillion-dollar houses that are developing in parts of the neighborhood such as Cord Meyers and Forest Hills Gardens. “There is an increase in inventory of these homes,” she said.
The proximity of Forest Hills and Rego Park to Manhattan draws a large number of professionals looking to buy in the area, said Wu. “What attracts them is the larger living space that they can buy at a lower price versus an apartment in Manhattan.” Easy access to local and express subway lines, express buses and the Long Island Railroad also make the area desirable to professionals
