Manhattan rents set a new record for the month of January

The 2023 New York City housing market predictions suggested that asking rents will cool this year. However, it seems that the long-anticipated decline in prices is far from becoming a reality. Rents in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens remained near record levels this January, according to the monthly report from Miller Samuel Inc. 

Manhattan’s median rent climbed to $4,097 in January 2023, setting a new record for this month. The new report shows that the median rent in this borough was up 1.2 percent from December 2022 and 15.4 percent higher than a year ago. Typically, rents decline in the winter season. However, this was not the case for Manhattan, as the median asking rent remained the third highest on record. 

“Rents are within a whisker of the summer high, and it is only January, which is typically a weaker rental time,” Jonathan Miller, president and CEO of the appraisal firm Miller Samuel, told CNN Business. “Almost every price indicator is at or near all-time records. It seems to confirm that rents aren’t going to go down.”

There are two main factors that contributed to the rising rents in January: the higher number of new lease signings and slipping vacancy rates. There were 3,441 new leases signed in Manhattan last month, up 8.2 percent from December 2022. The vacancy rate in this borough fell for the first time in nine months to 2.52 percent, according to the report. In addition, the market share of landlord concessions, such as free months of rent, slipped annually to 16.5 percent. 

New Yorkers living in the outer boroughs also faced higher rents last month. In January, the median cost of renting an apartment in Brooklyn rose to $3,499, falling just one dollar short of matching the current record set in August 2022. Last month, Brooklyn also saw more new lease signings despite near-record level rents. The number of new leases signed in this borough went up 5.3 percent from December 2022 to 1,111. 

The median rent in Northwest Queens, which includes Astoria and Jackson Heights, surged a whopping 19.9 percent in January to $3,369. This is the highest median rent on record for this area. More tenants in Queens are signing two-year leases to hedge against rising rents. Last month, the market share of long-term lease agreements reached the highest level in the past two years. 

Resources:

“Elliman Report: Manhattan, Brooklyn & Queens Rentals 1-2023,” (Miller Samuel Inc., 2023)

“New York City rents hit record highs in January,” by Devin Gannon (6sqft, 2023)

“Manhattan median rent climbed to record high in January,” by Jennifer White Karp (Brick Underground, 2023)

“Manhattan rents hit an all-time high in January,” by Robert Frank (CNBC, 2023)

“Rent in NYC is really high,” by Michelle Bocanegra (Gothamist, 2023)