Press Archives

Landlords continue to have the upper hand when it comes to Manhattan’s residential rental market, according to fourth-quarter reports released today by brokerages Prudential Douglas Elliman and Citi Habitats. The median asking rent climbed to 6.6 percent over the last year, and vacancies were filled at a near-record pace, according to Elliman, while both firms reported a sharp decline in concessions.

The tight rental market is not only a feature of the last few months but the year as a whole. In all of 2011, rental activity increased by 5.4 percent, more than double the rate in 2010, while prices averaged about $200 more than last year’s, according to an annual rental market report released today by residential brokerage MNS. The starkest growth occurred in two bedroom doorman apartments, where average rents spiked 8.6 percent between 2010 and 2011 to $5,646 per month.

Manhattan’s overall vacancy rate in 2011 was .96 percent, and Soho/Tribeca had the lowest vacancy rate at .55 percent, according to Citi Habitats. Not surprisingly, renters paid a premium for living there: in the fourth quarter, the $3,575 average monthly rent for a one-bedroom was Manhattan’s highest. Washington Heights offered the least expensive one-bedrooms in the borough, at $1,400 per month.

The findings echo a New York City Report recently released by RentJuice, a national real estate listings site.

Full Article Here: http://therealdeal.com/blog/2012/01/12/landlords-rejoice/