Prices up, but not as much

Property prices did continue to rise in Brooklyn last year, but at a rate that’s decreased substantially from the year before, according to the report put out last week by the Real Estate Board of New York.

For example, in 2006, the median sale price for a Brooklyn apartment grew only 15 percent, in contrast to a 38 percent increase from 2004 to 2005.

DUMBO continued to be the hottest condo market in 2006, with apartment prices growing 2 percent to a median of $998,000 each. But last year’s report showed a 27-percent increase.

“The rate of increase for 2006 was not as large as the rate of increase for 2005,” said Mike Slattery, a senior vice president at REBNY. “There was a perception in the market that things were slowing, and interest rates had risen a bit.”

The market might not be growing as quickly as last year, but Slattery was hardly bearish about Brooklyn real estate.

Here are some highlights of the report (or lowlights, as the case may be):

• Greenpoint prices skyrocketed, with the median price of an apartment rising 65 percent, from $388,000 in 2005 to $641,000 in 2006.

• Clinton Hill and the Columbia Street waterfront also made impressive gains, with median prices growing 30 percent and 36 percent, respectively. The median price for an apartment in Clinton Hill is now $384,000, while a Columbia Street apartments costs about $596,000.

• In order of decreasing value, the most expensive neighborhoods are DUMBO, Carroll Gardens, Greenpoint, Cobble Hill, and Vinegar Hill.

• In Prospect Heights, one-, two-, and three-family home prices also gained impressive ground, with the median price growing a jaw-dropping 50 percent, from $800,000 in 2005 to $1.2 million in 2006.