More than $20b worth of properties sold in NYC in Q1

During the first quarter, approximately 688 properties valued at $20.58 billion were sold in the New York City metropolitan area, according to Real Capital Analytics. All property sectors had increases in activity, compared with the sales volume during the first quarter of 2014, when a total of $12.1 billion in properties changed hands.

The office sector had the highest transaction volume with 85 property sales totaling $7.19 billion. The first quarter 2014 office sector sales total was approximately $4.2 billion, a drop compared with the $9.32 billion in completed office deals during fourth quarter 2013 — the highest quarterly office sales volume to date.

Thus far in the second quarter, completed deals are on their way toward surpassing previous quarters’ levels. Approximately 29 deals have been contracted, totaling $8.1 billion in sales price.

The top buyer of office properties in New York City during the past 24 months is JP Morgan, whi