Wall Street and Real Estate: Hurry Up Already

A Reuters article this morning tosses a little sunshine into an otherwise gloomy assessment of the effects of a shakier Wall Street on Manhattan real estate:

The full impact of Wall Street layoffs on the Manhattan real estate market could take a year or possibly longer to work through.

It's something we've wondered about: How can a relatively modest amount of layoffs over several months (maybe two years, in fact) really impact the nation's strongest housing market? Sales prices will come down, undoubtedly, and so will rents.

But won't it be so gradual that most tenants and buyers won't benefit before another up cycle makes real estate all the more expensive again? Just asking...