Apartment Rents In Manhattan, Brooklyn Again Hit New All-Time Highs

New York City renters have never paid more for their housing — and their options on where to live are dropping.

Median rents hit $5,295 in Manhattan in June, a 3% jump from May and 8% higher than the same time last year, according to a report from brokerage The Corcoran Group. 

“Across the board, quality apartments are commanding a premium, and renters have little room to negotiate,” The Corcoran Group Chief Operating Officer Gary Malin said in a statement.

The vacancy rate for apartments in the borough fell from nearly 1.9% to less than 1.5% over the past year. The borough had 16% fewer listings than last June, its lowest availability at this point in the year since 2023. 

Amid the run-up in rents and decline in options, renters may be trying to stay put amid the price growth. Leasing activity was also down by 7% compared to the prior year, while apartments' time sitting on the market dropped by 29%.

Those dynamics mean renters are unlikely to find relief anytime soon, “causing competition to remain fierce,” Malin said.

A similar dynamic played out across the East River. Median Brooklyn rents grew 8% year-over-year in June to $4,350, a new record, and landlords signed new tenants 30% faster than a year earlier. 

“Urgency is high, and well-priced listings are disappearing almost as quickly as they hit the market,” Malin said. 

The record-high rents for free-market apartments stand in stark contrast to the city's regulated market. Tenants in the city's 1 million rent-stabilized units will have their rents frozen on one- and two-year leases following the Rent Guidelines Board's vote last month.

Developers are responding to the surge in rents by flooding the city with applications to develop new housing. Permits were filed for nearly 17,000 rental units in the first quarter, 251% above the quarterly average going back to 2008, according to a report by the Real Estate Board of New York.