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Non-Doorman Buildings Becoming Less of a Rental Refuge

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[From the MNS Monthly Rental Report for Manhattan, August 2012]

The picture painted by MNS Realty's August monthly rental report [pdf] shows that as overall rents continue to rise, apartment hunters are looking for places to squeeze more value out of their leases, including forgoing doormen to chop a few hundred bucks from the monthly rent check. This bargain hunting pushed rents for non-doormen building up, however. The three largest sequential increases in Manhattan market segments occurred in non-doorman buildings. Rents for untended studios in Tribeca jumped 7.4% ($4,133 a month); Midtown East 1BRs were up 6.7% ($2,690); and Gramercy 2BRs climbed 5.1% ($4,348). To be sure, non-doormen units are still renting at a significant discount around town, particularly as the size of apartments grows, but the mean margin between doormen and non-doormen buildings is down to 16% for studios. We're sure this will feel like a larger amount as the holidays roll around, however, and non-doormen renters don't have to start handing out tips.

Citi Habitats' August report extends its market segment analysis up to the 3BR apartments, where average rents in the combine Soho/Tribeca area are close to cracking the $10K/month barrier, at $9,387. We doubt any new renters in these neighborhoods care about doorman vs. non-doorman discounts. For the price of an average studio in Soho/Tribeca ($2,619 a month), one can rent an average 3BR in Washington Heights ($2,267) and still have a few hundred bucks left over.
· Manhattan Monthly Rental Report - August [MNS]
· Rental Market Reports [Curbed]