Rich people are buying up more New York City penthouses now than any other time in the last 14 years

• Penthouse sales boomed in New York City in the first half of this year, Corcoran Group reports.
• Sales of the units were higher from January to May than any other period in the last 14 years.
• The boom coincides with a migration back to the city and a strong real estate market overall.

Penthouse sales have boomed in New York City this year, another sign that the city's real estate market is hotter than ever.

During the first half of 2021, real estate firm Corcoran Group saw 222 penthouse contracts signed, the company's CEO, Pamela Liebman, told Bloomberg's James Tarmy this week.

"That was between January and the end of May, the strongest first half-year of penthouse sales since we've been tracking this, starting 14 years ago," Liebman said.

If sales continue at the same pace, Manhattan could see over 500 penthouse sales in 2021, a feat the city hasn't seen since 2007, pre-recession. That year, the city saw 501 penthouse sales, the first and only time more than 500 of the luxury units have sold in the city, according to Mansion Global.

The most expensive penthouse listing in the city currently is inside the Woolworth Building and is listed for $79 million, Mansion Global reports. Nicknamed "The Pinnacle," the unit occupies the top five floors of the building and was first listed back in 2017 for $110 million.

Read more: Manhattan real estate is back

But penthouse sales are just the tip of the iceberg - Manhattan real estate is hot across the board. According to a recent report from brokerage Douglas Elliman and real-estate appraiser Miller Samuel, prices are soaring and more people are buying in New York.

The report found that the median sale price in Manhattan reached its highest level in eight quarters during the second quarter 2021, and that the borough recorded more sales during that same period than any other time in the past six years.

Rents are up too: The report found that more new rental leases were signed in June 2021 than any other month since as far back as 2008. Miller Samuel president Jonathan Miller told Bloomberg that the market is "tightening up" after a dip from fall 2020 through January of this year.

"The intensity of demand for new leases at lower rates is so high that it is burning up excess inventory very quickly," Miller said.

The rebounding market coincides with significant migration into the city. Location-data firm Unacast found earlier this year that migration to New York grew twice as fast than in 2019. In January and February 2021, the city grew by 1,900 people - during the same period in 2019, the city shrunk by 7,100 residents, according to Unacast.