Manhattan Rental Market Report

Updated: October 2009

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Table of Contents:

• Introduction
• A Quick Look
• Mean Manhattan Rental Prices
• Manhattan Price Trends
• Neighborhood Price Trends
  • Upper West Side
  • Upper East Side
  • Midtown West
  • Midtown East
  • Murray Hill
  • Chelsea
  • Gramercy Park
  • Greenwich Village
  • East Village
  • SoHo
  • Lower East Side
  • TriBeCa
  • Financial District
  • Battery Park City
  • Harlem
• The Report Explained

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Introduction

TDG/TREGNY is proud to present the October 2009 edition of our Manhattan Rental Market Report, the only research on the city’s rental rates published on a monthly basis.

Manhattan’s fate this fall was less transparent than in years previous. While the temperature drops and the leaves fall, we traditionally expect the summer’s flurry of activity to cool as well. This year, however, the already muted summer months led to speculation that this autumn may bring a delayed wave of new renters to the city and with them, sustained rental prices. While we continue to hold onto hope that this may be yet to come, the numbers this month indicate that this may not be the case.

Rents, which generally decrease in the fall, are relatively flat this month which is a good initial sign for the start of the season. It also seems as though renters that are in the market are taking advantage of the downturn to stake their claim on units in trendier neighborhoods. This extra demand has allowed areas like SoHo and TriBeCa to see upticks in rental prices.

Inventories, however, are back on the rise. Vacancies around Manhattan increased 1.72% this month — the first significant increase in vacancies in six months. It is this glut of inventory combined with a still unstable employment picture that leads us to expect continued downward pressure on the market this winter.

A Quick Look

Non–doorman Buildings (Average Prices)
	Most Expensive	Least Expensive
Studios	TriBeCa $3,119	Harlem $1,262
One–bedrooms	TriBeCa $4,592	Harlem $1,640
Two–bedrooms	TriBeCa $6,465	Harlem $2,032

Doorman Buildings (Average Prices)
	Most Expensive	Least Expensive
Studios	TriBeCa $2,777	Harlem $1,294
One–bedrooms	SoHo $4,522	Harlem $1,828
Two–bedrooms	SoHo $7,241	Harlem $2,653

Greatest Changes Since September:

• Non–doorman studios – TriBeCa – Up 8.04% ($232)
• Non–doorman one–bedrooms – TriBeCa – Up 8.69% ($367)
• Non–doorman two–bedroom – SoHo – Up 12.87% ($525)

• Doorman studios – Lower East Side – Down 8.27% ($208)
• Doorman one–bedrooms – TriBeCa – Up 8.50% ($297)
• Doorman two–bedroom – Lower East Side – Down 9.99% ($507)

Year-over-year Changes:

Non–doorman Citywide Rents: October ’08 vs. October ’09
	October ’08	October ’09	Change
Studios	$2,111	$1,927	-8.72%
One–bedrooms	$2,872	$2,632	-8.34%
Two–bedrooms	$3,993	$3,598	-9.90%

Doorman Citywide Rents: October ’08 vs. October ’09
	October ’08	October ’09	Change
Studios	$2,552	$2,298	-9.94%
One–bedrooms	$3,665	$3,282	-10.45%
Two–bedrooms	$5,656	$5,098	-9.87%

Notable Trends:

Hovering at zero — Rents around Manhattan continue to hover around the same low price points we have seen throughout the summer. The largest month-to-month change was in doorman studio units, which actually increased by 2.09%. Overall, Manhattan rents are down about a half percent across the board from September.

Vacancies tick upward — Inventory had been steadily decreasing in Manhattan through the summer, but this month vacant units are up 1.72% – 2.71% in non-doorman buildings and 0.87% in doorman buildings. This uptick is likely to continue through the winter months, which traditionally see less activity.

Fall falls flat — Many neighborhoods and categories have hit the lowest numbers TDG/The Real Estate Group has seen since data recording began in 2007. In addition, the increase in inventory on the market is not a positive sign as this glut of units is likely to continue and possibly create more downward pressure on the market throughout the New Year.

Where Prices Decreased:

Harlem—Doorman one-bedrooms (-0.40%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-0.78%)

Upper West Side—Doorman studios (-0.82%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-2.27%), doorman two-bedrooms (-0.80%)

Upper East Side—Non-doorman studios (-2.21%), doorman studios (-1.95%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-5.67%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-3.63%)

Midtown West—Non-doorman studios (-0.69%), doorman studios (-1.35%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-0.58%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-5.97%)

Midtown East—Doorman studios (-1.64%), doorman one-bedrooms (-2.29%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-2.72%), doorman two-bedrooms (-3.54%)

Murray Hill—Non-doorman studios (-2.35%), doorman studios (-2.84%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-1.86%), doorman one-bedrooms (-0.02%), doorman two-bedrooms (-1.53%)

Chelsea—Non-doorman studios (-1.02%), doorman studios (-3.24%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-2.21%)

Gramercy Park—Doorman studios (-3.77%), doorman one-bedrooms (-1.95%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-5.31%)

Greenwich Village—Non-doorman studios (-0.12%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-3.39%), doorman two-bedrooms (-1.77%)

East Village—Non-doorman studios (-4.68%), doorman studios (-3.39%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-6.20%), doorman one-bedrooms (-3.13%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-0.81%)

SoHo—Non-doorman one-bedrooms (-0.53%)

Lower East Side—Non-doorman studios (-0.25%), doorman studios (-8.27%), doorman one-bedrooms (-5.75%), doorman two-bedrooms (-9.99%)

TriBeCa—Doorman studios (-3.56%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-2.31%), doorman two-bedrooms (-2.41%)

Financial District—Non-doorman one-bedrooms (-3.07%), doorman two-bedrooms (-3.48%)

Battery Park City—Doorman studios (-5.39%), doorman two-bedrooms (-1.30%)

Where Prices Increased:

Harlem—Non-doorman studios (3.36%), doorman studios (0.70%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (0.39%), doorman two-bedrooms (3.70%)

Upper West Side—Non-doorman studios (0.85%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (3.13%), doorman one-bedrooms (0.07%)

Upper East Side—Doorman one-bedrooms (0.38%), doorman two-bedrooms (8.11%)

Midtown West—Doorman two-bedrooms (8.41%)

Midtown East—Non-doorman studios (0.48%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (6.14%)

Murray Hill—Non-doorman two-bedrooms (8.61%)

Chelsea—Non-doorman one-bedrooms (1.93%), doorman one-bedrooms (0.66%), doorman two-bedrooms (4.51%)

Gramercy Park—Non-doorman studios (3.95%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (2.64%), doorman two-bedrooms (1.23%)

Greenwich Village—Doorman studios (0.29%), doorman one-bedrooms (1.82%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (0.85%)

East Village—Non-doorman two-bedrooms (0.82%)

SoHo—Non-doorman studios (4.21%), doorman studios (3.29%), doorman one-bedrooms (2.14%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (12.87%), doorman two-bedrooms (2.24%)

Lower East Side—Non-doorman one-bedrooms (4.11%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (1.37%)

TriBeCa—Non-doorman studios (8.04%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (8.69%), doorman one-bedrooms (8.50%)

Financial District—Non-doorman studios (4.26%), doorman studios (2.70%), doorman one-bedrooms (1.64%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (0.65%)

Battery Park City—Doorman one-bedrooms (2.17%)

Tips for Renters:

• Head to the hill. Non–doorman and doorman studio units in Murray Hill are both reporting their lowest price points since TDG/TREGNY began compiling data. Non–doorman units fell 2.35% this month to $1,775, while doorman units fell 2.84% to $2,112. So whether you’re a new hire looking for your first apartment in Manhattan or a long–time resident looking for a fresh start, there has never been a better time to check out Murray Hill.
• Stretch out in the park. Gramercy Park non–doorman two–bedroom units have also hit their lowest price points this month. These units fell 5.31% to $3,416. And while they might not come with a key to the park, they do come complete with easy access to virtually all of Manhattan’s other neighborhoods.
• Hang out in Harlem. Harlem residents are no strangers to great deals, but the already low priced non–doorman two–bedrooms have dropped further this month to their all time low of $2,032. Who says there aren’t affordable digs in Manhattan?

Mean Manhattan Rental Prices

The Mean Rental Price graphs illustrate average monthly rents for studios, one–bedrooms and two–bedrooms in doorman and non–doorman buildings in Manhattan for the month of October 2009. Graphs tracking citywide and neighborhood price changes over a rolling 13-month period follow.

Manhattan Price Trends

Neighborhood Price Trends

Upper West Side

Upper East Side

Midtown West

Midtown East

Murray Hill

Chelsea

Gramercy Park

Greenwich Village

East Village

SoHo

Lower East Side

TriBeCa

Financial District

Battery Park City

Harlem

The Report Explained

The Manhattan Rental Market Report is the only report that compares fluctuation in the city’s rental data on a monthly basis. It is an essential tool for potential renters seeking transparency in the NYC apartment market and a benchmark for landlords to efficiently and fairly adjust individual property rents in Manhattan.

The Manhattan Rental Market Report is based on data cross-sectioned from over 10,000 currently available listings located below 155th Street and priced under $10,000, with ultra-luxury property omitted to obtain a true monthly rental average. Our data is aggregated from the TREGNY proprietary database and sampled from a specific mid-month point to record current rental rates offered by landlords during that particular month. It is then combined with information from the REBNY Real Estate Listings Source (RLS), OnLine Residential (OLR.com) and R.O.L.E.X. (Real Plus).

Contact us now: 212.475.9000

Note: All market data is collected and compiled by TDG/TREGNY’s marketing department and is overseen by C.E.O. Daniel Baum. The information presented here are intended for instructive purposes only and has been gathered from sources deemed reliable, though it may be subject to errors, omissions, changes or withdrawal without notice.

If you would like to republish this report on the web, please be sure to source it as the “Manhattan Rental Market Report” with a link back to its original location (http://www.tregny.com/manhattan_rental_market_report).