Manhattan Rental Market Report

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Letter From Our Chief Operating Officer

On behalf of The Real Estate Group, I am pleased to present the June 2009 edition of our Manhattan Rental Market Report, the only research on the city's rental rates published on a monthly basis.

As we mentioned last month, the summer busy season appears to be bringing demand back to the market. And June, in fact, marks the first month where both non-doorman and doorman vacancies have declined since September of 2008.

That said, rents have not rebounded as of yet. Year-over-year comparisons show that prices are still lagging 2008 by as much as 12.30% in doorman one-bedroom units. On a month-to-month basis, however, rents are beginning to stabilize in most categories. The only category to post a decline this month was non-doorman two-bedroom units, which fell 2.56%.

Yet, while there has been some leveling off of asking rents over the past few months, demand does not appear to be enough to uplift rents as we've become accustomed to seeing in the summer months. Additionally we've noticed landlords, that had been previously testing the market by removing tenant concessions, have added these incentives back into the mix this month.

I continue to caution landlords to carefully monitor their properties this summer and avoid being caught with excess inventory come fall. While Manhattan's rental market may be showing some signs of improvement, these should not be interpreted as the road to recovery just yet.

Sincerely,

Daniel Baum, C.O.O.
The Real Estate Group

A Quick Look

May Average Rental Prices in Manhattan

Greatest Changes Since May

Year-over-year Changes

Notable Trends

Manhattan sees some uptick — Although still down significantly in year-over-year comparisons, rents appear to be stabilizing again this month. Most units hovered around a 1% uptick, with only non-doorman two-bedrooms down 2.56%.

Vacancies see some relief — For the first time since September of 2008, vacancies are down in both doorman and non-doorman units this month as summer seasonality is helping to rid the market of excess inventory. Non-doorman units saw a decrease of 4.36% – a much needed break for these landlords who have not seen a significant decline in nine months – and doorman vacancies also fell 1.98%.

Stopping the rain — Seasonality may be helping transactions this month, but its still just as rainy for the rental market as Manhattan has been this month. Prices are down by as much as 12.30% in year-over-year comparisons – doorman one-bedrooms – with non-doorman two-bedrooms and doorman studios also showing significant declines of 11.28% and 11.16%. So, while activity may be picking up, the rental market is still gloomy.

Where Prices Decreased

Harlem—Doorman studios (-1.75%), doorman one-bedrooms (-3.69%), doorman two-bedrooms (-1.95%)

Upper West Side—Non-doorman studios (-0.89%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-2.80%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-5.40%), doorman two-bedrooms (-3.95%)

Upper East Side—Doorman studios (-0.81%), doorman one-bedrooms (-1.56%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-0.43%), doorman two-bedrooms (-1.23%)

Midtown West—Non-doorman two-bedrooms (-1.99%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-0.79%)

Midtown East—Doorman studios (-0.17%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-1.31%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-7.56%)

Murray Hill—Non-doorman studios (-1.20%), doorman one-bedrooms (-2.89%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-4.88%), doorman two-bedrooms (-0.59%)

Chelsea—Non-doorman studios (-7.40%), doorman studios (-4.40%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-5.11%), doorman one-bedrooms (-0.74%), doorman two-bedrooms (-3.80%)

Gramercy Park—Doorman studios (-2.89%), doorman one-bedrooms (-0.51%)

Greenwich Village—Doorman studios (-2.19%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-2.72%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-4.19%), doorman two-bedrooms (-5.64%)

East Village—Non-doorman studios (-0.22%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-0.79%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-3.40%)

SoHo—Doorman one-bedrooms (-1.22%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-1.92%), doorman two-bedrooms (-9.51%)

Lower East Side—Non-doorman studios (-5.35%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (-8.93%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-8.93%)

TriBeCa—Non-doorman studios (-1.39%), doorman one-bedrooms (-1.04%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-3.63%)

Financial District—Doorman studios (-0.49%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (-1.40%), doorman two-bedrooms (-0.78%)

Battery Park City—Doorman studios (-1.06%), doorman one-bedrooms (-4.32%)

Where Prices Increased

Harlem—Non-doorman studios (8.14%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (3.67%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (2.19%)

Upper West Side—Doorman studios (2.26%), doorman one-bedrooms (0.21%)

Upper East Side—Non-doorman studios (1.60%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (0.31%)

Midtown West—Non-doorman studios (2.31%), doorman studios (3.58%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (5.44%), doorman one-bedrooms (0.38%)

Midtown East—Non-doorman studios (2.00%), doorman one-bedrooms (7.82%), doorman two-bedrooms (10.35%)

Murray Hill—Doorman studios (1.46%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (1.14%)

Chelsea—Non-doorman two-bedrooms (5.35%)

Gramercy Park—Non-doorman studios (5.45%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (0.55%), non-doorman two-bedrooms (1.86%), doorman two-bedrooms (2.38%)

Greenwich Village—Non-doorman studios (0.72%), doorman one-bedrooms (2.03%)

East Village—Doorman studios (0.80%), doorman one-bedrooms (2.80%), doorman two-bedrooms (3.75%)

SoHo—Non-doorman studios (1.43%), doorman studios (9.59%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (7.30%)

Lower East Side—Doorman studios (1.53%), doorman one-bedrooms (11.30%), doorman two-bedrooms (10.33%)

TriBeCa—Doorman studios (2.22%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (4.46%), doorman two-bedrooms (8.12%)

Financial District—Non-doorman studios (13.69%), non-doorman one-bedrooms (3.87%), doorman one-bedrooms (1.29%)

Battery Park City—Doorman two-bedrooms (9.32%)

Tips for Renters

• Snatch up a downtown deal on the Lower East Side. Renters looking for a downtown place to call home, without sacrificing space, should head to the LES this month. Rents on non-doorman one- and two-bedroom units fell 8.93% this month, bringing them down to some of their lowest price points in over a year.
• Class it up in TriBeCa. For those Manhattan residents who have been dying to get into the Triangle Below Canal Street, now may be their opportunity. Rents in doorman one-bedroom units fell 1.04% this month, bringing them down to $3,509 – the lowest price we have seen in these units since April of 2007.
• Midtown Manhattan, affordable? Renters don't have to travel far for bargains these days as Midtown rents continue to fall. Midtown East non-doorman two-bedroom units have fallen 7.56% this month to $3,385. These units have tumbled 19.54% since March, making them an excellent east side option.

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 June 2009. Graphs tracking citywide and neighborhood price changes over a rolling 13-month period follow.

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 The Real Estate Group’s marketing department and is overseen by C.O.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).