"I used to hear Portuguese being spoken up and down Fifth Avenue," Ms. Williams said. "Now I show apartments, but I haven't finalized any deals yet. It's just sad times."

She had hoped to find in Brazil the lucky few who have remained rich enough in the country's devastated economy to consider buying a condo in Manhattan.

"In 1999, I was selling eight apartments a week to South Americans. But I was only able to find two buyers on this trip," Ms. Williams said. "A lot of Brazilians just don't have the money to come to New York anymore. It's not like it used to be."

Ms. Williams' beleaguered sales efforts are just one piece of a larger trend in Manhattan's $68 billion condominium market. Across Manhattan, as the post–Sept. 11 economic recovery continues and brokers talk about the return of the frenzied real-estate market of 1999, the market has seen an exodus of the international buyers who have traditionally been an engine for growth and profits. While trophy properties such as the gilded triplex at 740 Park Avenue, owned by the famed Noboa family from Ecuador, just hit the market for $28 million, and the sprawling 6,000-square-foot duplex at 770 Park Avenue, owned by the late Giovanni Agnelli, the chairman of the Italian auto giant Fiat, sold for a reported $20 million in September, finding buyers to replace them is proving difficult.

Economic turmoil in South America, Japan's nagging recession and the political fallout between Europe and the United States over the Iraq war have combined to drive many prospective buyers away from Manhattan.

Historically, the influx of international buyers has been a significant economic stimulus for Manhattan, as U.N. diplomats, executives of foreign corporations and wealthy globetrotters snapped up Manhattan condominiums-preferable to the city's co-ops and their snobby boards, which frown on corporate purchases and foreign assets-and spent and shopped across the city.

Indeed, New York is one of the world's biggest markets for foreign-owned residential real estate. Today, more than 2,500 foreign diplomats reside in New York, according to figures from the State Department, and international tourism contributes more than $5.6 billion to the Manhattan economy and more than 40 percent of all tourist spending in Manhattan, according to N.Y.C. and Company.

We Were Big in Japan

During the peak of the Japanese real-estate frenzy, the influx of Japanese investors into the New York market reduced the damage of the late-1980's economic slowdown.

"The Japanese went wild. They were coming in and paying any price for anything. It's not like that now," said Donald Trump. "You don't have any country with the frenzy of Japan to buy in New York. You have countries looking for a solid investment, but the frenzy is gone."

"Sales to Japanese real-estate investors actually made the recession of 1988-1989 a soft landing," said Jonathan Miller, the president of Miller Samuel Inc., a real-estate appraisal firm that issues influential real-estate market reports. But in the post–Sept. 11 world, the specter of terrorism and the slowdown in international business has reduced the number of new potential buyers from abroad and the demand for Manhattan pieds-à-terre . Over the past two years, international travel to New York City was down 25 percent, and the high-profile buildings that had been marketed to foreign buyers have taken the brunt of the loss.

"They're not here like they used to be," said Larry Kaiser, the president of Key-Ventures Real Estate, a top Manhattan brokerage. In April, he sold a $1.1 million three-bedroom co-op at 303 East 57th Street to the Panamanian ambassador to the United States, a rare sale nowadays. "The buyers at condominium developments such as 1 Central Park West, CitySpire at 150 West 56th Street and Trump Park Avenue are Americans, whereas five years ago we had a very strong international presence."

Deed-transfer records do not indicate the nationality of condominium buyers, and buyers routinely purchase apartments behind the veil of a corporate name, so accounts of foreigners' buying habits really only circulate among the brokers themselves-which is why the current foreign flight is not immediately presented in the well-publicized, optimistic market reports issued by Manhattan's major real-estate concerns each quarter. Though brokers are not diagnosing generally soft market, they do say that foreign clients who were ready to open their wallets five years ago have gone packing today.

Since Sept. 11, many brokers who were surveyed cite a 25 percent decline in foreign condominium buyers.

Fred Peters, the president of Warburg Realty, said that his company derived 10 percent of its gross income from sales to Japanese buyers alone during the late-1980's peak, whereas today, the figure for all international sales has dropped to just 4 percent.

Mr. Kaiser cited recent economic crises in Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela as prime factors keeping the South American buyer away, and political wariness over Iraq on the part of the hesitant French and German buyers.

But some brokers puzzle over the matter. Surely investment in a stable economy like the U.S. is preferable to keeping assets in a country where your checking account could go belly-up with the local branch? Surely for some with the money to spend, or invest, finance trumps politics?

"Yes, South American markets are in turmoil-that's exactly why buyers with disposable income want to put money in Manhattan," said Warburg's Mr. Peters.

"New York is perceived as being a good bet, and a safe bet," said Mr. Trump. "There are certain areas like South America who have pulled back, but it's never like the entire world comes here at one time. You have pockets of strength and pockets of weakness. But the market as a whole is strong."

But the condominium market has never been supported by investors. The conventional wisdom in real estate is that buying and flipping apartments without ever moving into them purely for fun and profit is just no longer a significant factor in the market.

"In the past, people would come to New York and buy condos purely as investments. We just don't see that anymore," said Patricia Cliff, the director of European sales and a senior vice president at the Corcoran Group. Ms. Cliff estimated that the market for international buyers is down 25 percent since Sept. 11. In 1999 and 2000, Ms. Cliff used to advertise her listings from high-profile residential developments, such as the Metropolitan Tower at 146 West 57th Street and the Trump International Hotel and Tower at 1 Central Park West, in international publications like the International Herald Tribune , Germany's Allgemeine Zeitung and London's Financial Times , but she decided to pull the advertisements due to a lack of interest. "It just wasn't worth it," she said.

Michael Shapot, an associate broker at Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy who specializes in corporate relocation for Fortune 500 companies like Microsoft and Citigroup, has seen a decline in foreign relocation that largely reflects the downturn in the international economy. "Between 2002 and 2003, I went from doing 120 transactions a year to 100," said Mr. Shapot. "There has been a broad decline in people relocating for business across the board. I think it's symbolic to business in general and not just international buyers."

'Freedom Buyers'

Of course, there will always be those wealthy enough to remain insulated from economic crises in their own countries, and who have the capital to continue to buy.

"There's always money everywhere, even in down markets," said Leonard Steinberg, a top broker at Douglas Elliman.

But how much? That's the question that developers of new signature condominiums in New York are asking themselves.

"With the signature properties, the international buyer is extremely important," said May Wong, the vice president of international marketing at the Sunshine Group. "These buildings, such as the Time Warner Center and One Beacon Court, cater to a global clientele with properties all over the world. At Time Warner Center, we have done exhibitions in London to market the property abroad and capitalize on the European buyers."

At Trump Park Avenue, the new development at 59th Street and Park Avenue, only 50 percent of the apartments have been sold since the sales office opened in October, and with final construction being completed at the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle, 65 percent of the apartments are spoken for.

Alan Rogers, the chairman of Douglas Elliman, sees anti-American sentiment from European buyers weighing on New York's condominium market.

"Part of the decline in international buyers is a post–Sept. 11 wariness," Mr. Rogers said. "If you're traveling overseas, the strength of anti-American sentiment is palpable. In the 1970's and 1980's, people were wowed by New York, there was a certain trophy element to buy in New York."

If Manhattan seems less a home away from home for Europeans, the city may yet capitalize on the flip side of wartime America's love affair with New York City. American buyers of Manhattan real-estate have taken advantage of historically low interest rates, a Dow that is up more than 29 percent this year and confidence in an improving job market to push the average price of a Manhattan apartment to record highs.

In new condominium developments like One Beacon Court at 151 East 58th Street, the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle and Trump Park Avenue at 59th Street and Park Avenue, Americans today make up more than 80 percent of the buyers, according to brokers.

During the late 1980's, at the height of the Japanese economic bubble, when fears over Japanese hegemony spawned films like the 1993 Sean Connery techno-drama, Rising Sun , international buyers bought approximately 50 percent of the apartments in high-profile condominium developments, according to brokers.

"Now foreign buyers have become a little protectionist, and it's not as cool as a foreigner to buy in New York," Mr. Rogers said. "In the signature condominium properties, the buyer profile is more New Yorker, more American."

Whether those buyers' patriotism will do what the Japanese did for the real-estate market in the early 90's remains to be seen.

Ron Delsener, the concert promoter, recently expanded his East Hampton real estate holdings by purchasing two acres adjoining property he already owns on Middle Lane. At the end of December, Mr. Delsener–who co-chairs Delsener Slater Enterprises Inc., which represents New York-area venues–and his wife, Ellin Delsener, paid $2.283 million for a two-acre parcel of land at 15 Middle Lane, adjoining 3.6 acres they already own on the exclusive strip that runs parallel to the ocean.

Hamptons real estate sources speculated that the Delseners would probably tear down the existing structures–a three-bedroom house, an adjoining two-bedroom guest house and an unheated guest cottage. The two acres were once part of a large estate that dates back to the 1800's. "There is nothing there architecturally," said one broker. The asking price was $2.4 million.

In the 1970's, the property was separated from the 11 acres to the north on Hither Lane, where Wall Street arbitrageur Jeff Tarr finished building a 10,000-square-foot house with a separate gatehouse last year. The Delseners bought their main house, a brown-shingled structure with a windmill, in the early 1980's; since then, they have purchased two adjacent parcels–one of which they sold in 1997 for $1.6 million. With their most recent purchase, the Delseners' property holdings on Middle Lane total 5.6 acres.

The Delseners, who were guests at Alec Baldwin's and Kim Basinger's gathering of checkbooks for President Clinton last summer, have been part-time residents of the Hamptons for years. Mr. Delsener sits on the board of the Guild Hall, an East Hampton museum and arts center, for which he has arranged multiple, high-profile performances, including a Billy Joel gig in 1996. The Delseners did not return calls seeking comment.

Upper East Side

19 East 88th Street

One-bed, 1.5-bath, 1,150-square-foot prewar co-op.

Asking: $495,000. Selling: $475,000

Charges: $1,062; 65 percent tax-deductible.

Time on the market: eight days.

MAKEOVER FOR A 40-YEAR-OLD. When interior designer Joan Halperin first saw this one-bedroom apartment just off Fifth Avenue, it was a mess. "I've certainly never sold anything in this kind of terrible condition," said Ellen Monness, a broker with Fox Residential Group, who represented Ms. Halperin. There was one wall that was completely worn through to the exterior brick, said Ms. Monness. Also as obvious was the old plumbing, chipping paint and antique appliances. The apartment's previous tenant, a woman who died last year in her 90's, had rented the residence for over 40 years, first from the building's developer and later from a businessman who bought the apartment and collected rent on it. Luckily, Ms. Halperin is well suited to cope with the crumbling apartment unit. She has renovated another unit in the building for a client. "I didn't want to pay for what somebody else had done and then have to rip it all out, anyway," said Ms. Halperin, who owns Joan Halperin/Interior Design. Construction is under way, and Ms. Halperin hopes to take up residence by April. Her main undertaking: creating a more open space where the living and dining rooms once were and making the bathroom look larger by putting the bathtub width-wise under the window, rather than lengthwise and perpendicular to the window. She's improvising as she goes along. "It's the first time I've done a job where I really didn't have everything on paper ahead of time," she said. "I'm treating myself in a way I wouldn't dare treat a client!" Broker: Fox Residential Group (Ellen Monness and Susan Grossman); William B. May Company (Nancy Marshak).

Midtown

15 West 53rd Street (Museum Tower)

Two-bed, 2.5-bath, 2,248-square-foot condo.

Asking: $1.475 million. Selling: $1.46 million.

Charges: $1,611. Taxes: $1,656.

Time on the market: three years.

TWO FEWER 20-YEAR-OLDS WITH A $500,000 PAD OF THEIR OWN. For broker Patricia Cliff, who handled multiple simultaneous sales in January in the Museum Tower, the condominium high-rise next to the Museum of Modern Art, this deal was a bit like a game of Monopoly. A couple originally interested in this high-floor, two-bedroom apartment was looking for a pied-à-terre , but they decided they preferred the one-bedroom layouts in this building. Another couple, a husband and wife with no children who had lived in the building for 10 years, traded in their 1,917-square-foot two-bedroom apartment for this one that is 331 square feet larger. But when they found out the renovations would cut into opera season-when the suburban couple who bought their old apartment insisted on being moved in-they consulted Ms. Cliff, who had an idea. The original clients who opted for the one-bedroom layout had bought two of them, five floors apart: a 1,200-square-foot apartment for $552,000 for them and a 973-square-foot apartment for $483,000 for their two kids who are away at college most of the time. Ms. Cliff's arrangement was bad news for the coeds: While the renovations are under way, Couple No. 2 will rent the college kids' apartment from Couple No. 1. Hope the kids negotiate a suite at the Plaza. Broker: Douglas Elliman (Patricia Warburg Cliff); Corcoran Group (Linda Stillwell).

Flatiron District

22 West 15th Street

One-bed, 1.5-bath, 800-square-foot postwar condo.

Asking: $419,000. Selling: $390,000.

Charges: $468. Taxes: $490.

Time on the market: four months.

FORMERLY THE HOME OF A WHOPPER. Three years ago, a Burger King executive bought this one-bedroom duplex for $255,000. He was a bachelor, and the somewhat unusual space-a loftlike master bedroom suite overhanging a living room with 17-foot ceilings-suited him. But last year, his flame-broiling masters relocated him to South Florida. He sold the place to a single female stockbroker looking to upgrade from her one-bedroom rental. She fretted over the price-and looked at many other apartments-but in the end, the fantastic views settled her mind: The World Trade Center cuts a dashing view in the middle of her floor-to-ceiling window. Broker: William B. May (Mitchell Speer); Charles H. Greenthal Residential Sales (Bobbie Gitter).

Greenwich Village

105 West 13th Street (Greenwich Towers)

Two-bed, two-bath, 1,100-square-foot postwar co-op.

Asking: $395,000. Selling: $360,000.

Charges: $1,269; 53 percent tax-deductible.

Time on the market: five months.

THERE'S A BARTENDER IN THE HOUSE Cocktail hour at Cafe Loup, the bistro next door to this co-op building, is apparently very popular with Greenwich Towers residents. After a doctor toured this two-bedroom apartment at the end of October, he repaired to the restaurant's bar for a quick conference with a couple of friends. According to broker Kitty Sorell, the doctor was giving up his full-service high-rise rental near Lincoln Center for something with the more charming qualities of Greenwich Village. The layout offers a nearly prewar feeling since the bedrooms are off a long hallway. Because the place needed some repairs-a paint job, new appliances and bathroom fixtures-the doctor was able to knock $35,000 off from the asking price. Broker: Corcoran (Kitty Sorell).

West Village

Washington Place near Sixth Avenue

Four-story town house.

Asking: $1.1 million. Selling: $1.2 million.

Time on the market: two years.

STELLA'S THE NEW TENANT. Of the 300 prospective buyers who sized up this down-at-the-heels brick town house, only February Vogue cover girl Stella Tennant had the vision to see its potential. Ms. Tennant, who recently had a son, was living nearby with her husband, David Lasnet, when she discovered this 1833 building. The house had been owned for 30 years by a family from Connecticut who rented it out to two tenants: an eye doctor, who was paying $900 in rent for the first floor, and a group of five struggling-artist types who collectively paid $2,500 a month for the top two floors. After several years of having such a sweet deal, the artists weren't exactly thrilled when they heard they would be losing the roof over their heads. They devised a couple of strategies for warding off potential buyers: posting signs in the stairwell that said "Dope Deals Are Down on This Block" and letting their dog soil the floors pretty much everywhere. When Ms. Tennant showed up one afternoon about a year ago, she was able to see through the muck. The house has two skylights, a garden in back and great original detail on the third and fourth floors. To the relief of the listing broker-who had been saddled with the house for two long years-Ms. Tennant made an offer. The sale took about seven months to close. Ms. Tennant had no comment. Broker: Halstead Property Company (Eileen Robert); Eychner Associates (Deborah Straubinger).

Bridgehampton

Butter Lane near Scuttle Hole Road

Two-story house.

Asking: $725,000. Selling: $690,000.

Time on the market: 18 months.

SLEEPERS AUTHOR WANTS BACK INTO THE HAMPTONS Writer Lorenzo Carcaterra and his wife Susan Toepfer, People magazine's executive editor, recently decided to give the Hamptons a second chance. In December, the couple bought this shingled, five-bedroom Bridgehampton house, built in 1993, which adjoins an agricultural reserve near the Atlantic Golf Club, north of the Montauk Highway. "We just kind of wanted to give it a try," said Mr. Carcaterra, who is putting the finishing touches on his second novel, Gangster . The couple, who have two children, had been hanging out in the Hamptons since the 1980's, when they briefly owned a house in Sag Harbor. "It was kind of barren, and we just loved it," Mr. Carcaterra said of the East End in those days. "It was nice, and then we sold, and then we rented, and it got too crazy, and we got out of it. Frankly, I don't know why we got back in it.… If I have to go at 3 A.M. to King Kullen to get some milk, that's not a good thing. And I'll have to fight, like, Ken Auletta for it." One local resident described Butter Lane as "middle-class horse farm country." A Hamptons broker said that the most noted feature of the properties near Mr. Carcaterra's new house is that rock star Billy Squier lives in the neighborhood. "You buy these places in wintertime. You have no idea what they look like in summer." said Mr. Carcaterra. "Right now, it looks like In Cold Blood country." He said his biggest worry was not what the place will look like in the harsh light of summer, but rather the traffic on Route 27. "The Friday-Monday thing? I don't have to do that, thank God," he said of the ride to and from Manhattan. "Either that, or I just put it in park and write on the L.I.E. Rather than buy a house, I should buy, like, Exit 31."