New York City Residential Rental Market Report: May 2021

The Corcoran Group recently released its residential rental reports for Manhattan and Brooklyn for May 2021. Among the reports’ key findings:

Manhattan

In May, there were 7,615 leases reported signed in Manhattan, up 6% from April. This marks the third straight month with over 7,000 leases signed in the borough. The total number of leases signed across Manhattan and Brooklyn reached 9,628.
At $3,125, May’s median rent grew 6% versus last month, a month-over-month gain not seen since early 2019.
With 14,913 apartments available, Manhattan inventory is up 9% from April – and up 142% since last May. Inventory grew as owners look to take advantage of the recent growth in the renter pool by releasing held-back units.
At 3.58%, the vacancy rate during May increased only slightly from April’s rate of 3.19% – but was up by nearly 2% year-over-year. Vacancy ticked up month-over-month as new listings plus prior availabilities still vacant outpaced leasing activity.
The highest vacancy rates were found in Midtown East (at 5.90%) and in the East Village/Lower East Side (at 5.40%). In contrast, the lowest vacancy rates were in the Financial District/Battery Park City (at 2.61%) and in the Greenwich Village/West Village (at 2.79%).

Average rents continued to fall annually in nearly all areas of Manhattan – the most in Gramercy, where rents declined 16% year-over-year (from $4,059 to $3,408), though SoHo/Tribeca bucked the trend and saw average rents jump 13% year-over-year (from $6,257 to $7,083).

In May, there were 2,013 Brooklyn leases signed — 14% more than in April and the second-highest reported figure in over two years. New potential renters returning to the city and current renters looking for new lease terms drove the increased activity.
But with 5,856 apartments available, Brooklyn rental inventory is also up — 57% from April and 182% since May of last year. A big reason for the jump is that owners who previously held back inventory released more listings to take advantage of the recent uptick in activity.
The median Brooklyn rent of $2,600 in May dipped from both last month and last year. Though the figure was 4% higher than the low in January 2021, price-sensitive renters are still finding values.
Rents fell the most in North Williamsburg, where rents declined 14% year-over-year (from $4,529 to $3,902). In contrast, pricing in Prospect Heights rose 4% (from $3,332 to $3,464) due to a new development that began leasing in May.

Columbus Circle, by Florian Wehde, courtesy of Unsplash. Click photo for profile.