Charting System Goes Live
A: I'm happy to announce that UrbanDigs CHARTS are now live! We have partnered with Streeteasy.com to bring to you daily snapshots of what is happening in the Manhattan real estate marketplace. The data is real time and updated daily. The widget on the top right of the page will show you a snapshot of TODAY, 7-DAY and eventually 30-DAY's worth of data for four key metrics that I thought was most important: NEW LISTINGS, PRICE REDUCTIONS, CONTRACTS SIGNED, & TOTAL ACTIVE INVENTORY. The charting system is based on this data.
To access charts, simply click the CHART INVENTORY TRENDS tab at the top of the main content section. That tab section will from now on be your control panel; as I continue to brainstorm what other tools/data may be added in the future. You can also access the TALK REAL ESTATE section from there.
Now, it is very important you understand that as of now we only have recorded data since November 5th, so 14 days. As time goes on, charts will get more useful. For now, feel free to check back daily to see what's going on but DO NOT analyze the charts too deeply as we need at least 6 months of data collected before any trends can be seen. We need a base collection of data first, and that takes time.
Here is how charts will appear, as for the first chart I had NEW LISTINGS & CONTRACTS SIGNED combined together so we can see:
a) what new listings came on to the market
b) what listings are now off the market
...from Manhattan real estate total inventory. Now, TOTAL ACTIVE INVENTORY is not calculated by the difference of these two metrics, as it's a bit more complicated than that (think about listings that are taken off market, or placed back on without ever going to contract)
The two other charts will show you TOTAL INVENTORY & TOTAL PRICE REDUCTIONS. Again, please be patient and wait until we have at least 6 months of data to get any significance from these charts.
As for retrieving the data, Streeteasy.com's systems update every 24 hours (over the wee hours of the morning), and we pull information AFTER this update has been completed. So, data is static with an update every morning basically reflecting what changes/new listings/contracts signed/ etc. that occurred the day before. It is important to note that:
a) Streeteasy often adds new firms who meet their listing standards that can lead to spikes in NEW LISTINGS data every so often
b) Streeteasy is at the mercy of the listing agent updating a property that has a CONTRACT SIGNED. So, its very possible this data is a bit lagging. The data is only as good as the agent that publishes it.
c) Streeteasy does the best job they possibly can, with the resources available to them to get the most accurate picture of what is going on with NYC real estate.
d) Streeteasy data is comprised of exclusive listings with an exact address in Manhattan (open listings and listings without an exact address have been removed for these tools). No representation is made as to the accuracy of this data.
e) Data includes the entire island of Manhattan.
f) Data includes Condo, Co-op, & Townhouse listings ONLY.
Trust me. They are putting forth a great effort in a city that does NOT have any public MLS system and whose data is only as accurate as the agent that publishes/updates it.
With that said, this data and charting system can no way be absolutely perfect. Thats almost impossible. However, after enough time (about 8-12 months) we should establish enough of a baseline so that basic trends can be able to be interpreted, and that is the entire point of these tools!
Transparency is GOOD! I hope you guys enjoy!!!
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Comments (6)
Love the charts! Really nice addition. A suggestion: is there any way to add moving averages? The data are volatile, and a four week moving average might help to smooth it out.
Love your site.
Posted by Scott | November 19, 2007 11:42 AM
Scott - yea Ill add tools like that in 4-6 months or so. For now, it will be very basic until enough data is collected.
During this phase, we need to fine tune and enhance the data and the systems on both ends.
Posted by Noah | November 19, 2007 11:49 AM
Wow- Wish we could compile that kind of data in the "Opaque" Hamptons?
Posted by Michael | November 19, 2007 2:02 PM
Nice !
-why are new listings and contracts signed tracking each other so well within a day's frame? Seems odd.
-NYC attorney general has 26,474 housing units accepted for 2006
Any idea on numbers for 2007 and 2008?
Thanks
Posted by WW | November 20, 2007 7:14 PM
keep in mind new listings may comprise back on market, new listings, + new firms added to streeteasy.com database.
contracts signed are captured as the agen updates the actual webad, which we know is always weeks after the contract is really signed.
Data will be more useful once we have 4-6 months recorded, and we'll add a time range option so you can chart it by month..that should be more accurate to spot trends.
not sure why new listings are so closely related to CS though//ill ask the se team
Posted by Noah | November 20, 2007 8:51 PM
Noah,
I have a question. I just drove past The Veneto yesterday and they have a sign up saying that they are sold out. Streeteasy lists thirteen closed sales, nothing in contract and no other listings for this building. It also indicates that the building is to have 137 units. Where are the other 124? Will they be added to Streeteasy upon closing? The Kalahari is another example. It recently had 4 closed sales listed and nothing else, yet Curbed reported that the sales office indicated they were almost sold out as well, and that building has over 400 units. I'm confused.
Posted by Brenda | November 29, 2007 9:42 AM