Manhattan rents plunge to levels not seen since 2004 - study

By Phyllis Furman
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Tuesday, October 6th 2009

The upper East Side has some of the best rent bargains in Manhattan, based on earlier prices.

Manhattan rents fell to levels not seen since 2004 over the summer, driving significantly more people to rent apartments, a newly released study found.

Rents in the third quarter fell 8% compared with a year ago, the cheapest they have been since 2004, according to a report by brokerage firm Citi Habitats.

Manhattan's vacancy rate rose marginally to 1.7%.

"It's good news for tenants," said Citi Habitats President Gary Malin.

In addition to lowering rents, landlords ramped up incentive packages, sometimes offering free rent or paying brokers' commissions. That helped drive up the number of rental deals brokered by Citi Habitats to 3,800 - an 11% increase over the previous year.

The average rent for a one bedroom apartment was $2,423, down 8.8% from last year. The average rent for a two-bedroom was $3,381, down 8.9%.

Compared with earlier prices, some of the best bargains could be found on the upper East Side, where one-bedrooms went for $2,133 a month, and in Harlem, where the average one-bedroom went for $1,534 a month.

SoHo and Tribeca remained the city's priciest neighborhoods, with one-bedroom rents priced at $3,276.

"Downtown is as hot as it gets," Malin said.