Even as New York City is undergoing its worst housing crunch in decades, there are still some surprising pockets of Manhattan where rents have actually declined over the past year.
That’s according to a new report real estate company StreetEasy released Wednesday, which found that asking rents are falling across most of the borough even as they saw a spike in Brooklyn and an even bigger one in Queens.
Manhattan median rent dipped 1% over the last year to hit $4,257 in February. That’s still far above the citywide median of $3,575, which rose 2.1% from 2023.
Of the 12 neighborhoods in Manhattan that saw year-over-year declines, the steepest drop was in Battery Park City, which plummeted 12.7% to $4,895, followed by Greenwich Village, which fell 7.6% to $3,995; Gramercy Park, which slipped by 5.9% to $4,585; the Lower East Side, which slid 4.6% to $4,100; and the Upper West Side, which dropped 4.1% to $4,295.
StreetEasy economist Kenny Lee predicted Manhattan asking rents will continue to decrease “as landlords adjust prices to attract tenants.” Many are increasingly offering concessions such as a month of free rent to attract new residents — a trend that’s ticked upward by 16.5% across the city over the last year.
Meanwhile, Queens has proved king of the outer boroughs, with rents “soaring” as renters seek out cheaper offerings beyond the city center. Median rent jumped 13.5% since 2013 to $2,950 — even as the availability of affordable rentals “dwindled.” Nabes including Long Island City, Astoria and Sunnyside have proved particularly popular.
Brooklyn’s median rent reached $3,330 in February, a 4.1% bump. That’s less than a third of the 14.3% rent growth it saw this time last year.
Competition is still tough, however, and concessions hard to come by as New Yorkers battle it out for space in the most populous borough. Waterfront areas such as Brooklyn Heights, Williamsburg and DUMBO were among the most in demand.
Lee predicted the citywide market would “be calmer” than last year’s, with an overall slowdown in asking rent growth.
But he echoed the dire findings of the recent New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey, which reported that just 1.4% of rental apartments were available.
“The drop in inventory — which was widespread across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens — signals a competitive spring rental market and underscores the severe affordability challenges renters face in NYC,” Lee said in the report.
