Market Intelligence
Bahar's
Best in Class.
Bahar's weekly newsletter — market notes, architecture, and economic forces shaping New York and beyond.
All editions
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5 New Buildings. 3 Museum Shows. 1 Extraordinary City.
I've been on countless New York rooftops, but the view from this one was a genuine WOW moment. At sunset, looking south over the United Nations, along the East River
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A Tale of Two Fifth Avenue Icons, and Manhattan Year to Date
Up and down Park Avenue, the mums are in bloom, bringing bursts of color to the street and delighting passersby.
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New York City Is Outrunning America
Scott Galloway and Adam Gopnik reflect on New York's extraordinary moment, plus the hidden history of the city's rooftop water towers and a $25M SoHo penthouse.
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A Very New York September
There is something energizing about September in New York. The city comes back to life, with 7% mortgage rates against still unusually limited inventory.
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September 11, 25 Years Later — A Reinvented Downtown
This week marks 25 years since September 11, 2001. The anniversary inevitably brings us back to the lives lost and to a day that changed New York—and the
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The Higher the Price, the Stronger the Year?
For many New Yorkers, Fairfield County has long been less a departure from the city than an extension of it. Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Westport and
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Manhattan | D.C. | The Cotswolds
August is usually a month when New York real estate goes quiet. This year, the slowdown is there, but the underlying picture is more complicated.
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What Makes Wealth Stay — Or Leave?
A trip from San Francisco to Napa and Sonoma, then on to Britain's tax debate, on why some places turn talent and capital into lasting prosperity.
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$110 Trillion. Record-Low Crime. Tightening Inventory.
I often wonder what it is about nature's display of color and symmetry that feels endlessly beautiful and uplifting. Even in the heart of Manhattan, these
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AI Wealth. Bidding Wars. San Francisco.
There is a widening divide between rate-sensitive buyers and the wealth-driven market. It is becoming harder to talk about "the housing market" as though there were only one.
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The New Pied-à-Terre Surcharge
A look at how New York continues to evolve — from population trends and tax policy to a visit to the Whitney Biennial and exceptional homes on and off the market.
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Jazz. MoMA. The Hamptons.
This week from Greenwich Village jazz history to a Marcel Duchamp retrospective at MoMA, the buildings redefining Manhattan's luxury market, and the changing Hamptons.
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From Milan to Manhattan
A personal milestone of ten years of recognition, Milan's remarkable housing market, congestion pricing six months on, and what the latest Manhattan data reveal.
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Great Cities Never Stand Still
National housing trends, Lower Manhattan's next chapter, and the reinvention of a Fifth Avenue icon.
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Happy Independence Day
250 years ago this weekend, America's founders adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing the birth of a new nation and affirming unalienable rights.
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What Great Cities Choose to Build
A few observations on cities, architecture, and the extraordinary structures we build to celebrate art and sport—from LACMA's Geffen Galleries to SoFi Stadium.
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From the World Cup to $16.75 Million Per Acre
New York's sports franchises rival global football giants, a four-acre Florida parcel sells for $16.75 million an acre, and luxury living moves beyond the city.
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New York, Dressed in Blue and Orange
The Knicks are NBA champions for the first time in 53 years, a market lesson from SpaceX and Hermès, an $80 million downtown contract, and the story of Grove Street.
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A Hawk Over Fifth Avenue
SpaceX, Anthropic, Carol Bove, and two competing visions for New York's future, plus a hawk over Central Park and a tenth year in the RealTrends rankings.
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This Is Why We Live in New York
The new pied-à-terre tax, the High Line as cultural spine, and what the May market is really telling us about Manhattan luxury.
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In Provence, as the Rothkos Sold
Notes from Provence on the 7-minute Joby flight to Manhattan, the persistence of elevated rates, and Tadao Ando, Matisse, and a record Rothko.
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Where Global Wealth Is Moving
A few things I've been watching this week—each offering a window into how new wealth is forming and where it tends to flow.
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Raphael, Rent Freezes, and the Magic of Trees
On trees, motherhood, Raphael at the Met, Matisse at Acquavella, Manhattan and Brooklyn rental data, and why a blanket rent freeze hurts the city.
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The Natural History Museum at 150
April's contract surge, new UWS listings, and where demand is actually concentrating across Manhattan and Brooklyn this spring.
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From Carnegie's "remote" mansion to one of Manhattan's most protected enclaves
Late April in New York. A few days each year when the magnolias take over, and Spring in the city is at its peak.
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Morningside—Value, If You Know Where To Look
Earth, as seen from the Moon. Artemis II sent this image back last week — the first crewed lunar flyby in over fifty years, and the first to capture.
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Norouz and the Rising Sun on Fifth Avenue
My Haft Seen this year, a traditional table set for the Persian New Year. It's a quiet arrangement of symbolic objects marking renewal, health, and new
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NY's Park Avenue Effect
London's repricing and a moment at the Met
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New Condo Development in 2025: What the Data Shows
NYC safety trends, mortgage rates, and shrinking home sizes.
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New York Steps Into 2026
From Oaxaca to Hong Kong — and the joy of coming home to New York
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NYC's 2026 Shift: Why "Normal" is Your Best Opportunity
Plus: Abu Dhabi's stunning new museum— Norman Foster at his best.
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Frank Gehry’s Legacy & the Lever House That Changed NYC
Visionary design, Brooklyn’s townhouse boom, and shifting markets
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Farewell to Robert A. M. Stern & Keith Haring’s Parade Balloon
From the housing shortage to NYC’s office conversions.
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The Real Story Behind Today’s First-Time Buyers
Homes that inspire for the holidays & a Thanksgiving note
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A Post-Election Surge in NYC Luxury Contracts
Inside 101 Franklin, an 1879 glimpse of the UWS, and a tower that may reshape the skyline.
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The Mamdani Promise & Sotheby’s New Era on Madison
How NYC keeps reinventing itself: politically, culturally, and architecturally.
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Momentum Returns: NYC Defies the “Wealth Flight” Myth
From NYC Marathon to Election Day, New York proves its resilience in every stride.
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Decade of Resales (& Losses) in NYC’s Condo Market
Ruth Asawa’s visionary forms at MoMA and remarkable homes redefining design.
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The City Evolves: From Central Park’s Revival to Office Resurgence
Film studios, skyline shifts, and the quiet power of progress.
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From a Tribeca Rooftop to London: Where Design Meets Desire
Brooklyn’s steady market and London’s most exclusive address
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NYC’s Private Clubs. The Flatiron Launches. Market Steadies.
Where exclusivity meets design — from Manhattan’s Q3 results to standout homes nationwide.
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The $6 Trillion Transfer & First Look at Q3 Manhattan
NYC’s galleries to Gaudí’s Sagrada Família in its final form
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Living in New York: Safer Than You Think
NYC Safety | Morocco Rising | Fed Cuts
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What Is a Home, Really? A Louis Kahn Reflection
Townhouse trends & Manhattan market data with depth
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September in New York: Endurance, Energy, and Design
NYC at 400, Foster’s $3B tower, fall art highlights, and the city that never sleeps.
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$45,000 for a Seat? Game, Set, Sold
Fall outlook and Midtown’s next chapter.
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Labubus for $8? Maybe on Canal Street...
Powell and Jackson Hole, the questions ahead, & an eye-candy home.
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The Cocktail-Party Question Everyone Asks Me
Norman Foster’s New York | $4M+ Resilience & $10M+ Trophies
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$500K for 2 Weeks & Central Park’s Story
From a poet’s vision to shifting markets — NYC, the Hamptons, and beyond.
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Rashid Johnson. 73,000 Jobs. COMPASS Sets Records.
The Fed Paused. President Trump Didn’t.
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Office Towers -> Homes!
From Interest Rates to Reimagined Towers
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Are International Buyers Back? Who's Leading the Charge?
Flatiron Building goes residential | Summer’s CURATED collection of top-tier homes across the U.S.
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Sol LeWitt on Park Ave. & A Changing Upper East Side
Tariffs, Saudi real estate, & June’s U.S. market insights
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From Provence's Sculpture Trails to The Not-Yet Mayor
Affordable Cities & Rent Control