NYC real estate sees ‘pre-election bump.’ But who is the best candidate for the industry?

Typically, in the weeks and days before a presidential election, home sales across America drop in anticipation of the winner.

But buyers, sellers and developers in the New York metropolitan area have experienced the opposite this year, seeing what they call a “pre-election bump.”

“With the last election, we are talking about 2019, let’s say the second and third quarter of 2019, we didn’t see any sales at all. As I remember, in fact, the market was slow. ,” Naftali Group chairman and CEO Miki Naftali told Fox News Digital. “The main difference is twofold.”

“Strong sales momentum and consumer interest in [One High Line] “The project before the election was not really what we expected, as sales tend to drop leading up to the general election,” CEO of The Witkoff Group Alex Witkoff also told Fox Digital.

REAL ESTATE TYCOON SAYS HOW TRUMP CAN STOP THE ‘INSANITY’ IN THE HOUSING MARKET

“But [it] suggests a growing sentiment among consumers who realize now is the time to secure prime real estate amid potential regulatory or economic changes after the election,” added Witkoff.

Together, the New York City juggernauts have seen combined sales north of $503 million this year alone in projects across Manhattan. Most notably Naftali, Henry is located on the Upper West Side and 255 East 77th Street on the Upper East Side. The Witkoff Group’s One High Line in West Chelsea saw twice as much sales activity in October as it did in the summer.

“During COVID and a few years after COVID, many developers could not or did not feel comfortable buying and designing and developing buildings. And more importantly, commercial banks were not really lending,” Naftali. he explained.

“Now we have a product to sell, and because there is not a lot of goods, there is a need … People want to buy and they want to buy a good product. And I think that this particular election, I think that there are many things in the world that are very important the election, but it is not the only topic that people talk about about it and pay attention,” he continued.

Enter, loan rates – which Naftali expects to cool significantly over the next two years. Many people feel that “it is better to buy now” when the competition may be very low. However, as of Thursday, the 30-year fixed rate rose for the fifth week in a row to 6.72% from last week’s reading of 6.54%.

“In the last few weeks at One High Line, buyers who have seen this project and thought they are now rushing to buy before the election,” Witkoff noted.

“Buyers in the New York market or the top markets in the US are very educated. They know what they want,” said Naftali. “A good product sells well, and there isn’t much inventory of a good product.”

As of last week, the betting markets are heavily tilted in favor of former President Donald Trump, predicting that Trump has a 58% chance of winning against Vice President Kamala Harris.

REAL ESTATE EXPERT RYAN SERRANT WARNS OF SELF-DAMAGE MISTAKE FOR OLDER BUYERS TO SAVE THE DOLLAR

And while more than $2 billion poured into betting on the election, real estate developers weren’t expecting their industry to expect a Trump win.

“The market’s uptick right now appears to be driven by factors beyond the election results alone, such as increased demand, promising prices and the continued appeal of New York City,” Witkoff said. “The real estate scene in New York prioritizes long-term stability.”

“I actually don’t think the demand in the inner cities has anything to do with betting on Trump winning or Harris winning,” Naftali said.

“I think that what will make the difference is that once we have passed the election, there will be a lot of unknowns or there will be noise in the media or it will be criticized,” he continued. “Hopefully most of it will fade away and go into a normal little cycle. And I think any candidate will hopefully focus on making the economy better and making sure that every American will do better.”

Buyers and sellers in the Manhattan market will likely stick to the basics, according to developers: school facilities, job opportunities, entertainment and other aspects of life.

“Both candidates offer different approaches in terms of architecture, but the regulatory implications for the luxury sector, especially for developments like the One High Line, will remain minimal,” Witkoff said. “New York City’s luxury housing sector is less affected by short-term policy changes.”

“New York developers and buyers and sellers are very focused [on] supply and demand and what the city, as a city, offers. And they are more concerned about the safety and infrastructure of the city and not about the federal government,” Naftali admitted.

Without making any political endorsements, Naftali criticized Harris’ initial consumer credit and pointed out that Trump’s background has a better understanding of real estate.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

“I don’t think it makes a difference in high end markets like New York and Miami. It’s not that $25,000 isn’t a lot of money, but on average when you buy a house … on average $1 million, $1.5 million. [price points]$25,000 won’t make a difference,” he said.

“The fact that Trump was an engineer in New York, and he understands very well the real estate market and the challenges of being an engineer,” Naftali said, “because a lot of people think, ‘Oh, engineers are just making money and everything is good, and it’s easy to make money.’ Developers take a huge amount of risk, and not everything goes well all the time, and the market changes.”

“If you really want to create, really develop and fill the gap of more apartments that need to be built to meet the growing demand in the US, [government] should be involved. Independent developers, and apparently [Trump’s] family members, are still active in real estate. I think that between those two candidates, you understand. That’s just his background.”

READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS