Manhattan apartment hunters leased smaller rentals in June
- Median rent in Manhattan was $4,300, unchanged from a year ago, as per the Elliman Report
- Brooklyn and Queens lease signings increased to their second-highest levels on record
The average size for an apartment leased last month fell sharply according to the Elliman Report.
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Last month, Manhattan apartment hunters signed leases for much smaller rentals on average while median rent ($4,300) was the same as a year ago, creating a tie for the highest June on record, according to the latest version of the Elliman Report.
The average size for a Manhattan apartment leased last month was down sharply for both new development and existing rentals, the report said, with a 15.3 percent year-over-year drop in average square feet to 900.
Typically, you would expect a shift to smaller apartments would drag down the median rent, but that’s not the case when the market is so competitive. Case in point: rent per square foot, a more reliable metric for this market, rose 3.9 percent to $85.37, according to Jonathan Miller, president and CEO of appraisal firm Miller Samuel and author of the report. "Prices for what renters got essentially increased," he said.
And for the fourth time in five months Manhattan renters paid a premium for apartments, which indicates the market-wide average rent that renters agreed to pay was higher than the market-wide average for asking rents. This premium was fueled by a record 24 percent of Manhattan listings going to a bidding war—the highest month in 3.5 years of data, Miller said.
Renters swapped Manhattan apartments in earnest last month, with new lease signings hitting their second highest level for June, up 31.2 percent from a year ago. Manhattan listings were up 38 percent over a year ago.
Brooklyn lease signings jump
In Brooklyn, several rent metrics set new records in June as lease signings hit their second-highest level, jumping 144.6 percent from June 2023. Median rent was $3,695, up 3.9 percent from a year ago.
Brooklyn inventory rose to its second highest June on record, up 61.9 percent from the previous year.
Rents in Queens fall
Over in Queens, several rent metrics fell year over year. Queens median rent was $3,250 last month, a drop of 9 percent from June 2023.
New lease signings in Queens increased to their second-highest level on record, climbing 123.1 percent from the previous year.
Listing inventory rose to its second-highest June on record, jumping 105.7 percent from a year ago.
High rents discourage some renters
Corcoran also released rental market reports for Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Gary Malin, COO at Corcoran, noted that record-high rents “might be keeping some apartment seekers on the sidelines, or choosing to explore options in other boroughs or locales.
“It will be interesting to see if this trend reverses as we move through the season. At a certain point, there is a limit to how much a renter is willing—or able—to pay. Barring a turn-around, landlords may need to increase incentives or make the necessary adjustments to spur a greater number of tenants to act.”
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