This week’s Notable Sale: 565 Broome Street 28A – SoHo, NYC
Our own Brett Miles sat down with legendary BHS President Emeritus and Chief Brokerage Consultant Hall Willkie to discuss Manhattan’s new development market, his outlook for the remainder of the year, and the details of a recent notable sale in which he represented the buyer. The full-floor residence offered extraordinary views and spectacular sunsets, while the transaction involved a bidding war and more than three months of negotiations. Read their transcribed conversation below:
Hall:
Can you share some commentary on this remarkable home and provide some insight into the deal itself?
Brett:
It really is a remarkable residence. It’s a full-floor home and one of only a handful of residences of this scale in the building, with extraordinary views and some of the most spectacular sunsets I’ve seen in Manhattan. There are certain apartments where you walk in and immediately understand why they’re special, and this was one of them.
The deal itself was anything but straightforward. There had been substantial interest in the residence, but try convincing a buyer of that when a property has been on the market for more than a year! Buyers naturally assume you’re bluffing when you tell them there is competition—and in this case, the competition was very real. Another buyer wanted the apartment badly and was prepared to go above the asking price to get it.
Negotiations ultimately stretched over more than three months. It became one of those transactions where patience and persistence mattered, but so did longstanding relationships. I had worked closely with two of the three members of the onsite sales team during my years at Douglas Elliman, and that history and mutual trust proved incredibly valuable as we navigated a complicated deal.
Hall:
Were you in a bidding war for this listing?
Brett:
Yes—and a very real one. The competing buyer wanted the apartment badly and was prepared to go above the asking price in an effort to secure it. My client was overseas, which added another layer to an already complicated negotiation, and there were moments when we had to make important decisions very quickly despite the time difference.
Ultimately, I was able to get my client to the number and terms necessary to secure an accepted offer. It was a great reminder that in a competitive situation, price certainly matters, but so do credibility, communication and the relationships you’ve built over the course of your career.
Hall:
Anything that took place on the deal that is reflective of a pattern in the market right now?
Brett:
The timing could not have been more extraordinary. After more than three months of negotiations, I finally went to bed having told my client overseas that we had a deal. I woke up the next morning to news of the proposed pied-à-terre tax dominating the headlines—and to a client who was understandably very concerned about what it could mean for an overseas buyer purchasing a New York residence.
That experience speaks to something we’re seeing in the market today: buyers at this level are sophisticated and highly informed, and external factors can enter a transaction overnight. A broker’s job isn’t simply to find the apartment and negotiate the price. You have to help a client separate a headline from what is actually known, understand the potential implications, and keep an emotional transaction grounded in facts.
Hall:
How is the current new development market performing in Manhattan?
Brett:
New development is moving, and it can move very quickly—but today’s buyer wants to see a light at the end of the tunnel. We’re seeing a meaningful difference when a project is within roughly a year of closings. The days when buyers routinely committed substantial capital to a residence years before completion, essentially buying off plans, are largely behind us.
I remember selling new development when we would launch as pilings were just beginning to go into the ground. That meant asking buyers to visualize a home—and sometimes an entire building—that was years away from becoming reality. It could be a very long road from first sale to closing.
Today, when their financing allows for it, we’re seeing sponsors wait longer to bring projects to market. Launching once a building is substantially framed gives buyers something tangible. They can visualize the views, the scale, the architecture and, most importantly, the timeline.
The demand for exceptional new development is absolutely there. Buyers are simply placing a much higher premium on certainty. When they can see the finish line—and the product delivers—they can move remarkably quickly.
Hall:
What is your forecast for the remainder of the year for the NYC real estate market?
Brett:
I used to feel fairly confident predicting the market six months ahead. At this point, I’ve all but given up trying!
Time and again, this market has defied what conventional wisdom told us should happen. I thought the proposed pied-à-terre tax would put a chill on the luxury market, and then the Olshan Luxury Market Report remained strong week after week. I thought elevated interest rates would meaningfully curb sales—and instead, we began seeing more buyers simply sidestep financing altogether and purchase with cash.
That has probably been the biggest lesson for me over the last five years: New York buyers adapt. The circumstances change, buyers recalibrate, and the market finds a way forward. And when something truly exceptional comes to market—particularly a property that is scarce or impossible to replicate—buyers will still compete for it.
So rather than pretend I know exactly what the next six months will bring, I’ll say what experience has taught me: Never Bet Against New York.
Connect with Brett today at bmiles@bhsusa.com or fill out the form below.
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