NYC Rents Hit All-Time Highs in July

Despite a slowdown in the growth of rents, high summer demand pushed rents across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens to record highs in July. Queens median rents rose the most across the three boroughs, up 1.3 percent from last July to $1,996, according to the July 2017 StreetEasy® Market Reports[i].

Brooklyn rents rose at roughly the same pace as Queens, up 1 percent to $2,453[ii], while rents in Manhattan grew just 0.2 percent over the prior year, but also hit a record high of $2,980. Queens offered the smallest share of rental discounts: Only 26 percent of rentals in Queens received a discount in July, compared to 32 percent in Brooklyn and 36 percent in Manhattan. This is down from a high of nearly 50 percent last fall in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and down from a 40 percent high in November in Queens.

“A mix of rising rents and fewer discounts or concessions from landlords shows signs of stabilization after a weaker rental market last year,” said StreetEasy Senior Economist Grant Long. “While welcome news for landlords, renters planning on signing a new lease before summer ends should expect limited negotiating power and will need to act fast. This is especially true in the city’s least expensive neighborhoods in Brooklyn, Queens, and Upper Manhattan; all of which have risen dramatically in popularity over the past year.”

[tableau server=”public.tableau.com” workbook=”priceIndices_July2017″ view=”StreetEasyPriceIndex” tabs=”no” toolbar=”no” revert=”” refresh=”yes” linktarget=”” width=”600px” height=”820px”][/tableau]See below for additional sales and rental market trends across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.

Key Findings – Manhattan

• Manhattan rents rose to an all-time high. Median asking rents rose 0.2 percent since July 2016 to $2,980, the highest on StreetEasy record.
• Upper Manhattan rents increased the most. Manhattan’s least expensive submarket experienced the largest price increases, with asking rents rising by 2.2 percent.
• Rents fell in Midtown and the Upper West Side. Despite growth elsewhere in Manhattan, asking rents fell by 0.4 percent in both Midtown and the Upper West Side to $3,060 and $3,048, respectively.
• Rental discounts hit their lowest levels since 2015. Thirty-six percent of rental listings were discounted in July, marking the lowest share of discounts seen since August 2015.
• Manhattan’s sales stagnated, except at the bottom. Median resale prices were essentially unchanged year-over-year at $1,160,295. Prices for the least expensive homes rose 5.8 percent since last year, while home prices in the luxury segment fell 3.7 percent.

Key Findings – Brooklyn

• Brooklyn rents hit a record high. Asking rents rose 1 percent to a record high of $2,453, the highest on StreetEasy record.

• Share of rentals with a discount fell. 32 percent of rentals offered a discount in July 2017, down from 38 percent in July 2016 and peak levels in November 2016 (46 percent).
• South and East Brooklyn rents grew the most. Rents were up 1.8 percent in South Brooklyn and 1.5 percent in East Brooklyn compared to this time last year.

• Resale prices rose across Brooklyn. Median resale prices in Brooklyn rose 4 percent since last year to $758,349.

Key Findings – Queens

• Rents in Queens reached an all-time high. Median asking rents rose 1.3 percent year-over-year to $1,996, the highest on StreetEasy record.
• A quarter of rentals were discounted in July. The share of rentals that were discounted fell to 26 percent, down from a high of 40 percent in November 2016.
• Northeastern Queens heats up. Median asking rents in Northeastern Queens grew the most of any Queens submarket, up 4 percent since last year to $1,931.
• Queens resale price growth outpaced Brooklyn and Manhattan. The median resale price in Queens rose 7.8 percent to $500,289.
• Median resale prices rose the least in the Northwest Queens. Northwest Queens’ median resale price rose 3 percent year-over-year to $752,455, the highest price level of any submarket in Queens.

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[i] The StreetEasy Market Reports are a monthly overview of the Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens sales and rental markets. Every three months, a quarterly analysis is published. The report data is aggregated from public recorded sales and listings data from real estate brokerages that provide comprehensive coverage of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens with more than a decade of history for most metrics. The reports are compiled by the StreetEasy Research team. For more information, visit http://streeteasy.com/blog/market-reports/. StreetEasy tracks data for all five boroughs within New York City, but currently only produces reports for Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.

[ii] Similar to the StreetEasy Price Indices, median rents are measured by the StreetEasy Rent Indices. By including only valid and verified listings from StreetEasy and employing a repeat rentals approach, the indices emphasize the changes in rent on individual properties and not between different sets of properties. Full methodology here: http://streeteasy.com/blog/methodology-price-and-rent-indices/