The February rental reports are out, and according to appraiser and Elliman report compiler Jonathan Miller, the spread between the median Manhattan rent (down 2.8 percent from the same period last year to $3,100) and the median Brooklyn rent (up 11.6 percent to $2,890) is the narrowest he's seen it. Part of the reason for that, other than Brooklyn's increasing overall popularity, is that the borough's new development has been slanted toward luxury rentals. Overall, rents fell from last year's levels for the sixth consecutive month, but the change has again not been significant. Miller expects rising NYC employment, tight credit and rising mortgage rates to keep upward pressure on rent levels going forward.
Brokerage MNS had the average rent increasing slightly in Manhattan from the same period last year, citing a growing demand for non-doorman units. They also broke down the year over year price change by neighborhood, with Harlem seeing the biggest price jump and Tribeca seeing the biggest decrease, followed closely by Midtown East.
Brooklyn is where it's all happening, though. As mentioned earlier, the median price is up 11.6 percent from the same period last year, and smaller apartments (studios and one-bedrooms) saw the most growth, indicating a high number of new city residents. Meanwhile, the number of new rentals during the month increased 40 percent from last year as tenants chose to look for more affordable options instead of resigning leases.
Notable neighborhood trends included two-bedrooms in Brooklyn Heights increasing 5.3 percent from last month and Williamsburg rents increasing 4 percent from last year (with the high number of luxury projects currently in development, that trend is expected to continue).
· The Elliman Report [Elliman]
· MNS rental market reports [MNS]
· Rental Market Report archives [Curbed]
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