Surprise, surprise: Manhattan rents rose again this month, with the median price up 2.4 percent year-over-year to $3,380. It's the 15th consecutive month of year-over-year rent increases and the 41st month out of the past 48 in which Manhattan rents have risen. In Brooklyn, the story was large the same, with the median rent up 4.8 percent year-over-year to $2,961. However, Elliman Report compiler attributes the rise in Brooklyn to a shift to larger units, and notes that accounting for size, things did not really get more expensive.
In both Manhattan and Brooklyn, landlords concessions dropped to nominal levels, resulting in large numbers of renters being forced to find new apartments when it came time for lease renewals. The number of new rentals (i.e. new transactions, not new construction) in Manhattan surged to 5,931—an 85.1 percent increase, the highest rise in four years. In Brooklyn, there was a similar surge in new rentals, and tenants showed a lot of resistance to increased rents.
Meanwhile, in Queens, rents actually dropped with the median rent down 12.4 percent year-over-year to $2,597, but don't get too excited. Miller points out that the numbers were skewed lower by a sharp increase in one-bedrooms. Going by size, rents still rose for every category except studios.
According to the Citi Habitats reports, Manhattan's vacancy rate (1.07 percent, down from 1.37 percent in April) is at its lowest point in nearly three years, and the average rental price is at $3,475. "Just when you think they have reached the ceiling, rents continue to climb. Unfortunately for many tenants, the largest gains in May were for studios and one-bedrooms," said Citi Habitats President Gary Malin.
And breaking things down by neighborhood, the MNS reports show that in Manhattan, the biggest increase year-over-year was in Harlem (9.7 percent), while the biggest drop was, surprisingly, in Tribeca, where prices fell precipitously (8 percent). In Brooklyn, Dumbo and Boerum Hill led the charge, rising 7.29 percent and 6.73 percent respectively, while the usually hot Crown Heights had the biggest decrease, falling 12.92 percent.
· Previous Market Reports [Curbed]
· Mapping New York Neighborhoods Hit Hardest by High Rents [Curbed]
Loading comments...