New York’s Sweet Apartment Deals Are No Longer Wooing Renters
- New leases last month fell 11% in Manhattan, 4.1% in Brooklyn
- Rent reductions now may be needed to fill units, broker says
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 24: A sign advertises an apartment for rent along a row of brownstone townhouses in the Fort Greene neighborhood on June 24, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. According to a survey released on Thursday by real-estate firm RealtyTrac, Brooklyn ranked as the most unaffordable place to live in the United States.
Photographer: Drew Angerer/Getty ImagesIt’s a renter’s market in New York City, and after a year of being bombarded with landlord offers of gift cards and free months, apartment seekers are getting bored with all the perks.
In Manhattan, the number of newly signed leases last month dropped 11 percent from a year earlier, sending the apartment-vacancy rate to its highest level this year, according to a report released Thursday by appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate. In Brooklyn, renters signed 4.1 percent fewer leases, only the second time in 2017 that the year-over-year tally dropped.