Who Pays Cash for a New NYC Condo, and Who Gets a Mortgage
Short answer: 39% of the 53,267 new condo sales we checked were paid in all cash, with no mortgage recorded. The other 61% financed, and the typical financed buyer borrowed 73% of the price, putting 27% down. Cash rises with price: 30% of buyers at $500,000 to $1 million paid cash, against 73% at $20 million and up. And cash is rising: 50% of buyers since 2023, up from 37% in 2016–2022.
The Higher the Price, the More Buyers Pay Cash
- 35%Under $500K
- 30%$500K–$1M
- 40%$1M–$2M
- 47%$2M–$3M
- 54%$3M–$5M
- 59%$5M–$10M
- 70%$10M–$20M
- 73%$20M+
Sponsor sales of one home, 2001–2026. Hover a column for the number of sales.
Cash buyers pass half at $3M–$5M. From there it keeps climbing: 54% at $3 million to $5 million, 59% at $5 million to $10 million, and 73% of the 339 sales at $20 million or more. The cheapest homes buck the trend a little: 35% of buyers under $500,000 paid cash, more than in the band above, and in Queens it's 49%.
Since 2023, Half of New Condo Buyers Pay Cash
- 17%2005
- 14%2006
- 27%2007
- 28%2008
- 33%2009
- 33%2010
- 34%2011
- 33%2012
- 43%2013
- 50%2014
- 44%2015
- 43%2016
- 43%2017
- 40%2018
- 41%2019
- 35%2020
- 32%2021
- 34%2022
- 48%2023
- 51%2024
- 50%2025
- 50%2026
Sponsor sales of one home; years with 300+ sales. 2026 is a partial year.
From 2016 to 2022, 37% of new condo buyers paid cash. Since 2023 it's been 50%. That's the stretch after mortgage rates rose in 2022, when borrowing got more expensive. It isn't just more luxury closings: homes of $3 million or more were 17% of sales in 2016–2022 and 18% since. The rise shows up at every price. Under $1 million, cash buyers went from 30% to 41%; at $1 million to $3 million, from 39% to 51%.
Brooklyn Buyers Finance Most Often
50% of Manhattan's new condo buyers paid cash, against 40% in Queens and 26% in Brooklyn. Some of that gap is price, since Manhattan sells more expensive homes. Compare homes at the same prices and Manhattan and Queens look alike, at 41% and 40%, while Brooklyn stays lowest at 25%.
| Price | Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $500K | 30% | 30% | 49% |
| $500K–$1M | 35% | 22% | 37% |
| $1M–$2M | 50% | 26% | 38% |
| $2M–$3M | 53% | 32% | 47% |
| $3M–$5M | 57% | 41% | – |
| $5M–$10M | 60% | 52% | – |
| All prices | 50% | 26% | 40% |
Share of sponsor sales paid in cash. – : fewer than 100 sales.
At $1 million to $2 million, 50% of Manhattan buyers paid cash and 26% of Brooklyn buyers did. Brooklyn is where new condo buyers most often take a mortgage.
LLCs and Trusts Usually Pay Cash
75% of buyers who took title through an LLC, trust or other entity paid cash, against 30% of people buying in their own name. Most residential mortgages are made to people, not companies, which is one of the trade-offs covered in buying in your own name vs. an LLC.
How Much Financed Buyers Borrow
The median financed buyer borrowed 73% of the price. The most common loan is 70% to 79% of the price, taken by 34% of financed buyers. 22% borrowed 80% or more, and only 5% borrowed 90% or more. At the other end, 14% borrowed less than half the price.
| Under 50% | 14% |
|---|---|
| 50%–69% | 30% |
| 70%–79% | 34% |
| 80%–89% | 17% |
| 90% or more | 5% |
The 32,090 financed sales with a loan amount for the one home.
Buyers of pricier homes borrow a smaller share: a median of 75% under $1 million and 64% at $5 million and up.
| Price | Financed sales | Median loan | Median down payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $500K | 3,918 | 79% of price | 21% |
| $500K–$1M | 13,411 | 74% of price | 26% |
| $1M–$2M | 8,498 | 70% of price | 30% |
| $2M–$3M | 2,976 | 70% of price | 30% |
| $3M–$5M | 1,924 | 67% of price | 33% |
| $5M–$10M | 1,050 | 64% of price | 36% |
| $10M–$20M | 226 | 63% of price | 37% |
Loan = the purchase loan recorded at closing (a consolidation agreement's total, or the mortgage plus any second mortgage), divided by the deed price. Bands with fewer than 100 financed sales aren't shown.
9% of financed buyers (13% since 2023) took over part of the developer's construction loan through a consolidation agreement (a CEMA), so they paid mortgage recording tax only on the new money. See condo vs. co-op loans for how that works.
Who Lends on New NYC Condos
Wells Fargo made the most purchase loans on new condos we can trace to a lender (5,566), followed by JPMorgan Chase (3,845), Citizens Bank and First Republic Bank. Those four made 54% of the loans that name a lender. First Republic failed in 2023 and its loans went to JPMorgan Chase.
| Lender | Loans | Share of named-lender loans |
|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo | 5,566 | 24% |
| JPMorgan Chase | 3,845 | 16% |
| Citizens Bank | 1,886 | 8% |
| First Republic Bank | 1,452 | 6% |
| Citibank | 1,411 | 6% |
| Bank of America | 857 | 4% |
| HSBC | 382 | 2% |
| East West Bank | 332 | 1% |
| Metro City Bank | 314 | 1% |
| United Nations Federal Credit Union | 285 | 1% |
Purchase mortgages on sponsor sales of one home, 2001–2026, where ACRIS names the lender (72% of them). The rest name only MERS, a registry that holds loans for lenders.
Many sponsors also name a preferred lender in the offering plan, sometimes tied to the mortgage contingency. See sponsors' preferred lenders and closing costs for a new NYC condo, which include the mortgage recording tax financed buyers pay.
How This Is Counted
We took the deed for the sponsor's first sale of each home in the 2,791 condo buildings we've matched to city records, closed from 2001 to 2026, and searched ACRIS, the city's property records, for loans on the same tax lot. A sale counts as financed when a mortgage, second mortgage or consolidation agreement naming the deed's buyer as borrower was dated within 30 days of the closing or recorded within a week of the deed; otherwise it counts as cash. Co-op share sales, whose loans aren't recorded as mortgages, are left out. The developer's construction-loan documents, which are recorded on the unit lots too, don't count. Deeds covering more than one home, or a home plus parking or storage, are left out. Loan share is the loan amount (a consolidation agreement's total, or the largest mortgage recorded around the closing plus any second mortgage) divided by the deed price, for the 32,090 financed sales with a loan amount for that one home. Same-price borough shares cover the 45,273 sales under $3 million: each borough's cash share in each price band is weighted by the citywide mix of sales across those bands.
A few limits: a buyer who paid cash and took out a mortgage months later still counts as cash, and a loan recorded on the building's original lot instead of the unit's isn't found. A check of sales counted as cash found a small share that took out a mortgage one to five months after closing. Resales aren't included.
FAQ
How many NYC condo buyers pay cash?
39% of new condo buyers we checked paid all cash, and 50% since 2023. At $20 million and up it's 73%.
How much do NYC condo buyers put down?
The median financed buyer borrowed 73% of the price, so put about 27% down. Only 5% borrowed 90% or more.
Do you need cash to buy a new condo in Manhattan?
No, but about half of buyers there pay cash: 50% of Manhattan's new condo buyers paid cash, against 26% in Brooklyn.
Which bank makes the most new condo loans in NYC?
Wells Fargo, then JPMorgan Chase, among loans where the city's records name the lender.
Where this comes from: deeds and mortgages recorded in NYC's ACRIS records, matched to the offering plans on file. Updated October 2026.
Related: Getting a Loan for a Condo vs. a Co-op in NYC · Should You Use the Sponsor's Preferred Lender for a New Condo?