Whenever I analyze data (and I basically analyze everything from taxi cab rides vs. subways, single ride metro cards vs. monthly unlimited cards, doing my own laundry or sending it out or cooking a great meal vs. going out for dinner) I always like to get as many opinions as possible and read as much as possible. When I read about what is happening nationally in the world of real estate , I say to myself, self; the real estate national sales average, whether up, down sideways or backwards does not give a specific group of buyers or sellers data to make a decision on how to price there property or what the correct purchase price is. It is a known fact that if you live on the UWS of Manhattan, you are going to rent an apartment for $4-5 per square foot, per month. If you go to Jersey City, that same sized apartment on the UWS of Manhattan will rent for $2-3.5 per square foot per month. If I go to Idaho, I will certainly be buying more square footage than in Manhattan for the same amount of money. What I am trying to say is that everything is relative and that many cities, neighborhoods and zip codes and even streets are case specific. Sure Manhattan and the outer boroughs have slowed (a touch) down over the last six months in Sales, but we need to be more specific. Riverside Drive will still fetch a higher square footage price than East 3^rd Street, between Avenue C and D. NYC is multi layered when it comes to growth and contraction and will continue to be. A year ago, we may have priced an apartment based on comparables that sold and closed in the last 6-12 months. Now we are pricing apartments, based on what is in contract over the last six months. Change is good and knowledge is powerful. Read as much about the local real estate market as possible. Read about oil, read about wheat, and read about new housing starts. The more knowledge you have, the better equipped you will be when buying or selling. If you have any questions, please email me at pzweben@elliman.com Enjoy the Heat!!!!