Ryan Serhant, Bravo's 'Million Dollar Listing New York' star and author of 'Big Money Energy', joined Yahoo Finance Live to disucuss his new book and his outlook for the Manhattan Real Estate market.

Video Transcript

SEANA SMITH: The housing market's been pretty resilient throughout the pandemic, but it's been a bit of a different story when you take a look at what's happened with New York City. So here to talk more about this and his brand new book, we want to bring in Ryan Serhant. You might know him from Bravo TV's "Million Dollar Listing." He's also author of the new book, "Big Money Energy."

And Ryan, it's great to have you on Yahoo Finance Live. Let's just start with the housing market and what you're currently seeing play out in New York City. I guess, how would you describe the market right now. And is it really bouncing back at this point?

RYAN SERHANT: Well, New York is definitely in a very, very different space from the rest of the country. There has been a flight to air and space and land from New York City since last March, so about 11 months. But we've seen contracts increase week after week, year over year, for the last, I want to say, 60 days. It's been really, really, really exciting-- tempered excitement because anything can happen. But it's been really, really good.

There's been great activity on listings across the board. Our company is involved in multiple bidding wars at this point throughout New York. So it shows that people are coming back. Because now there's this thing called a COVID deal that was really available last spring and summer. And when people got those, their friends started hearing about them. And now their friends are either vaccinated, or they feel much more comfortable. They have a bit more consumer confidence.

And now they're saying, wait a minute. You're not supposed to bet against New York, right? Could I get a good deal still? And everyone is saying the same thing at the same time. So if there are still buyers out there, it is still a good market to buy. But it won't be for that much longer.

ADAM SHAPIRO: So let me-- I'm going to ask you about the book, but also this issue in the same sentence. In "Big Money Energy," you say, get out of your bubble, crush your insecurities, and amplify your strengths. I can tell you the strengths of New York because I love this city. But why would someone want to buy here if Midtown and the office towers are only at 10% capacity and no one predicting that comes back soon?

RYAN SERHANT: Because people said the same thing after the savings and loan crisis, after 9/11, after 2008, and after Hurricane Sandy. And every single time, the market came back that much stronger. Suburbs, backyards have been around for a really long time, well before urban areas. And people flock to the cities for a reason. There are strong energy here. And the reason you buy now is not for today. You buy now for the future.

The rental market is a whole different story that we can talk about. The rental market is depressed and will continue to be for quite some time because the rental market is temporary. You're asking someone to live here in New York City, right now, for a reason. And there are not as many reasons as there were pre-COVID.

But if you purchase here and you're able to get a good enough discount off of the highs of three to six years ago, you know restaurants will come back. Office buildings will be filled. Theaters will be packed. And you will be able to say you bought during COVID, the same way people say, I bought in 2009. I know-- crazy, right? Got a good deal.

ADAM SHAPIRO: I did.

SEANA SMITH: Hey, Ryan, I want to talk a little bit more about your new book because-- so you wrote it during COVID, from my understanding. And you talk about what you need to do to boost your self-confidence, what you need to do to achieve that massive success. And I think that this speaks to so many people right now, especially when you take a look at the unemployment picture in this country, with millions of people out of work. I guess, what's the key to doing this? And what do you hope this book helps people achieve?

RYAN SERHANT: Yeah, thank you for asking. Yeah, I wrote it during quarantine as a follow-up to my first book, "Sell It Like Serhant," which was the tool kit for the gig economy, which is everything I knew about how to sell real estate, how to sell anything, and how to build a sales career. And then, we are all quarantined, and people started losing their jobs left and right. Unemployment went to record highs. People were being furloughed.

And so many people were connecting their self-worth and their confidence to their income, or their lack thereof. And I used to feel that way greatly for a long time, especially in New York City when everything is very, very expensive, and there's lots of pressure to be successful. And then the light bulb went off, and I realized, I don't have to wait for someone else to give me an opportunity. I can start being the person I want to be today. And it all starts right here.

As long as I believe it and I put it out into the world, the world will understand it. That'll be the perception that I put out of myself. That will become my reputation. That will become my brand. And I will, will the future to give me what I want. Will it happen tomorrow? No. But will it happen a lot sooner than it would if you just wait for the world to be ready for you? Absolutely.

And right now, it is more important than ever before to find that inner confidence and start being the future you. Because that's what I think about. Today, I'm not working for me today or me tomorrow. I'm working for Ryan 2030 because 2030 is going to be here well before we know it. I mean, it is already February 2021. Like, it's crazy.

SEANA SMITH: I know, I know. Time is flying these days, even faster than before. And I have to think that all of us thought that that might have been a little bit hard to predict. But Ryan Serhant, great to have you on Yahoo Finance Live. Congratulations on your new book, author of, "Big Money Energy."