Manhattan’s slight uptick in vacancies has led to a smaller jump in rents and more concessions to tenants, according to two real estate reports released Thursday.
Citi Habitats found the borough’s vacancy rate was 1.98% in February, about .20% higher than during the same period last year. Average rents last month were $3,491, only $9 more than in February 2016, according to the real estate group.
Some of the neighborhoods that had the lowest rent included Washington Heights, where studios had an average rent of $1,550.
Douglas Elliman’s report also found an increase in unoccupied units during the last 12 months as the vacancy rate increased from 2.31% to 2.44% during that time. Average rents went up 2.1%, going from $4,032 in February 2016 to $4,118 last month.
Citi Habitats president Gary Malin said the larger-than-normal number of offerings gave home hunters an advantage as more owners shelled out perks, such as a free month’s rent or no broker’s fee. About 31% of Citi Habitats’ February transactions had a concession, which is 6% higher than the same period last year.
Douglas Elliman also found a surge in perks. The percentage of transactions with concessions went from 19.1% in February 2016 to 26.4% last month.
