Parc East Towers in 240 East 27th Street (iStock; Equity Apartments)
Overall apartment availability surged in August but varied greatly from one neighborhood to the next, an analysis by The Real Deal shows.
Manhattanites continued leaving their rentals, especially on the Upper East Side and Upper West Side, and landlords dangled discounts in Queens. The Brooklyn rental market was tepid but was the strongest of the three.
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From July to August, Manhattan’s rental inventory jumped 11.9 percent, the analysis found. The highest number of new listings was on the Upper East Side, where 1,272 units came onto the market. The neighborhood ended August with 3,140 vacant rentals, the most in the city and an increase of 21 percent from July.
Vacancy more than doubled in Peter Cooper Village, and nearby Parc East Towers had the highest number of available listings, at 123 units.
Of 43 Manhattan neighborhoods measured by TRD, only Chinatown and Midtown West saw a dip in rental inventory, neither by more than 3 percent.
The median rent on the Upper East Side dropped by 9 percent in August, to $3,000. On the Upper West Side, which had the second-highest bump in inventory, the median dropped just over 5 percent.
Growing supply put downward pressure on rents throughout the city as landlords offered concessions on nearly a quarter of new leases signed in Manhattan. In Brooklyn, almost 20 percent of new rentals included concessions.
In Manhattan, the median price of studios and one- and three-bedroom units fell approximately 5 percent in August; two-bedroom units’ median rent fell 4 percent to $4,450.
Queens stood out as the best place for renters to find bargains. The median price for studios fell 10 percent to $2,140. A typical one-bedroom cost $2,500; two- and three-bedroom units were priced about the same, at $3,200 per month.
In Long Island City, the median rent dropped 9 percent in August as inventory nearly doubled. In Astoria, where inventory grew 20 percent, prices were stable, falling less than 1 percent.
In Brooklyn, Williamsburg inventory grew 11.8 percent as the median rent in the neighborhood fell 3.7 percent. The median in Downtown and Brooklyn Heights fell 6 percent.
Renters nabbed units in the less expensive neighborhoods of Bushwhick, Flatbush and Prospect Heights, where availability fell in August from July.
Across the borough, two-bedroom units held their value, with the median rent ending August where it began, at $3,350. A typical studio went for $2,350 and a typical three-bedroom for $3,787.
One upside for landlords: While vacancy rose overall in August, its rate of increase slowed.
If the trend continues, the nadir for the city’s pandemic-stricken rental market might not be far off.