Median Rent in Manhattan Reaches a New High

The median rent in Manhattan was $4,000 in May. From April to May, this increase was more than 25 percent. In May, the average rental price was just under $5,000.

The median rental price in Brooklyn went up to $3,250 in May, an 18 percent increase from the previous year.

After people left the city in droves and prices plunged at the beginning of the Pandemic, residents were worried about soaring rent rates. The recent rise has been spurred by more people returning to the city in recent months, high mortgage rates and remote work that justify paying higher rents for some tenants who have put more value in their home spaces

Following the expiration of New York's eviction moratorium, rising eviction rates in combination with the lack of affordable rents could further amplify the problem. The price threshold reached in May suggests that rents will remain high through the summer, which many real estate agents consider to be the peak rental season. In the long run, renters will not be able to keep up and rates will have to go up.

There has been an increase in the demand for apartments due to the influx of renters. People who left the city for the Pandemic are returning. Keyan Sanai, a real estate agent at Douglas Elliman, said, "If you add in the many new hires and recent graduates that are looking for places, this is what happens."

People are being encouraged to rent apartments because of rising mortgage rates. Jonathan Miller, of Miller Samuel, the appraisal company, said that this would tip a portion of would-be home buyers into the rental market.

Mr. Miller said that remote work settings allow people to rationalize paying more in rent. He said that people are living where they want to live, which can cause them to pay more.

Those looking for apartments are giving up key features because of the rent increases. Hal Gavzie said that people are looking at different areas that are not as prime. The people are making more sacrifice. They are no longer looking for laundry in the building.

A person that is looking in NoHo is not looking in Kip's Bay, and a person that is looking in Gramercy is not looking in battery park city. Sanai said that people are compromising more on location.

Mr. Miller said that rents will either have to go down or go up. He said that the best thing for high housing prices is high housing prices. The consumer goes somewhere else when they can't pay.

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