Billyburg Unbound: More Investors, Developers Circle Brooklyn’s Hippest Enclave

Much like the identity-swapping “Game of Thrones” assassin Arya Stark, Brooklyn’s Williamsburg has worn many faces. The neighborhood has evolved from a gritty, industrial warren to a contemporary hub for artists, luxury retail and contemporary housing. 

Rezoning played a large part in the creation of Williamsburg as it is known today. Indeed, it was 20 years ago this year that the Bloomberg administration initiated a plan to rezone Williamsburg — along with its northern neighbor Greenpoint — in an effort to revitalize the area and allow for more housing and open space.  

There was a burst of development between 2007 and 2019, with approximately 17,100 new housing units developed along the waterfront in Williamsburg and Greenpoint, according to the Department of City Planning. The housing development in those areas also included more than 2,000 new income-restricted units and created over 1,000 affordable homes. 

“In a city like New York, where there’s always a housing shortage, residential developers saw opportunities and large footprints [thanks to the rezoning],” said Dan Marks, CEO of investment sales brokerage TerraCRG. “With the rezoning, it gave them a higher density and the ability to build the towers that you see today. So this neighborhood went from a strictly blue-collar manufacturing warehouse-type neighborhood with low-density housing, to higher-density development due to the rezoning.”

Over 150,000 people live in Williamsburg, according to data from Douglas Elliman Real Estate. The median household income for the neighborhood was just over $94,000 a year in 2022, according to city data. And, true to its history, the population is increasingly diverse, with a growing mix of Black, white, Asian and other groups, according to New York University’s Furman Center. 

“It’s the coolest place on Earth,” said Sean Kelly, a partner with investment sales and capital markets firm Ariel Property Advisors. “That’s what’s drawing [developers] there.
It is just a very eclectic neighborhood where you have investment bankers, lawyers, bartenders, chefs, fashion designers and tech executives.”

The waterfront in particular has become a huge draw for developers. There was a “surge” in newly developed condos selling for over $2 million on the Williamsburg waterfront in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the Corcoran Group. The average price for a condo in Williamsburg is about $1.3 million, according to StreetEasy research.   

The scarcity of the waterfront is one of the reasons developers are building there, Kelly said, noting “they’re not making any more land.”

One new development in Williamsburg is One Williamsburg Wharf, by Naftali Group. It is a 22-story residential tower along the neighborhood’s East River waterfront. The tower is part of Naftali Group’s larger investment in Williamsburg Wharf as a whole, a multi-phase development that will include 850 “resort-style” residences across five residential towers with both condo and rental options.

“There’s more people living and enjoying Williamsburg than in certain areas of Manhattan now,” said Ryan SERHANT, CEO of real estate brokerage Serhant, which handles the sales and marketing for Williamsburg Wharf. “That’s why you’ve seen such incredible interest in retail space for brands and in residential space for buyers.”

There is a lot of interest in Williamsburg Wharf from non-Brooklyn residents, Serhant added. These buyers are looking for Manhattan value in terms of amenities, he said, but are attracted to the lower prices and larger spaces that Brooklyn — particularly Williamsburg — has to offer. 

The median sales price for a Manhattan condo in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $1.665 million, according to appraiser Miller Samuel. The median price in Brooklyn for the same period was $999,000.

“The penthouse that we put into contract at Williamsburg Wharf for over $7 million has a roof terrace, stunning views of the city, is right on the water, and has parking,” Serhant said. “I can’t find you a penthouse with parking
for $7 million in Manhattan. So even though the pricing [in Williamsburg] is rising relatively speaking to the quality, it is still a great value.” 

Other residential developments in Williamsburg include the 322 units at One South First by Two Trees Management, Gemini Rosemont’s 57 homes at 171N1, and the 857 units at 420 Kent from Spitzer Enterprises. 

“Williamsburg is a brand name, and the stretch of Williamsburg along the waterfront is just amazing,” Miki Naftali, CEO of Naftali Group, said. “I give a lot of credit to the City of New York and City Planning, because if you think about what they did along the waterfront in Brooklyn, they created a really fantastic area.”

There is a palpable vibe to Williamsburg that makes it a dynamic market for residential development.

“What is so unique here is that the building sits on the waterfront,” Naftali continued. “It creates this cool vibe, and for us it was like, wow, this is such an amazing opportunity to create something special.”

But residents aren’t the only ones moving to Williamsburg of late. Retailers have been particularly drawn to the neighborhood, too. 

Last year marked the third best year on record for sales of retail properties in the overall Brooklyn market, according to data from Ariel Property Advisors, which has been tracking such data since 2010. There were a total of 81 transactions which generated $641.5 million in sales, a year-over-year rise of 48 percent.

There were several significant retail deals in Williamsburg in 2024 that helped drive the overall success of the Brooklyn market. Westchester County-based Acadia Realty Trust bought several retail buildings in Williamsburg for $35 million, and there was also Manhattan-based Empire State  Realty Trust’s $195 million purchase of properties from L3 Capital.

“From the very start [Williamsburg] got our attention because many of the brands that are in SoHo and Meatpacking District — based on movements to date — have a place on North Sixth Street in Williamsburg, or in Williamsburg in general,” said Anthony Malkin, chairman and CEO of Empire State Realty Trust.

“North Sixth Street also stands out very much because of access, the subway station,” Malkin said. “It is one of the few subway stations in New York where weekend ridership exceeds weekday ridership.” 

That ease of access is a particular draw for investors and retailers in the neighborhood. 

“It’s five minutes from Manhattan on the L train,” Malkin said. “It’s 16 minutes from Manhattan on the NYC ferry.”

Some of the area’s major retailers include luxury brands Hermes and Chanel — something that would have been unheard of in the area before the rezoning changed the face of Williamsburg — as well as eyewear retailer Warby Parker and shoemaker Nike.   

Retailers need to be where there is great foot traffic in order to make any money, and Williamsburg offers them that opportunity. 

“Sales is a function of foot traffic, and foot traffic is a function of the neighborhood,” Malkin said. “This is not neighborhood retail. This is a retail neighborhood.” 

Seven of the top 30 transactions by dollar volume in Williamsburg in 2024 were retail assets, according to Ariel Property Advisors data. Six of those transactions were residential developments, one was special use — the $177 million sale of the William Vale Hotel — three were office assets, seven were mixed-use, four were multifamily, and one was industrial.

It’s a rundown that might’ve been inverted 20 or more years ago, with far more industrial properties likely to be sold in any given year. 

“There continues to be different iterations of what’s happening in Williamsburg,” said Ethan Stanton, managing director of capital markets at JLL. “Developers want to build a project — it doesn’t matter what asset class — in Williamsburg because they believe in the fundamentals of the submarket.

“There’s a tremendous amount of demand,” Stanton added, “and there is still room to run in the neighborhood.”

Amanda Schiavo can be reached at aschiavo@commercialobserver.com.