Going Down: Manhattan Apartment Prices

Scanning the listings on Corcoran.com, you'd think that Manhattan apartment prices haven't budged, despite the crumbling of the rest of the nation's real estate markets. I'm not looking for Manhattan prices to crumble; I only want them out of the ozone.

Whenever I see a 750+ square foot apartment listed for under $500K, I assume there is something terribly wrong with it, like a $1500 maintenance fee. Or it sits under a highway, or over a bar. Something. And I am never disappointed.

But the news beginning to be good for us fence sitters. Barely noticeable to the naked eye, some prices are moving downward.

For example:

• The Washington Heights apartment on Wadsworth sat at $439K since May and now it lists at $409K.
• The apartment on West 12th took its second price slashing from $725K to $699K to $649K.
  
• Most surprising of all is the penthouse studio at 96 Schermerhorn that seemed like a deal at $275K. The price went up to $300K, but now it sits at $250K.
  

All three of these apartments sounded relatively sellable at their original prices. Sellable to someone other than me.