The median rent price in Manhattan rose annually for the third month in a row to close out 2024, a trend that seems likely to continue moving into the new year, according to the latest report from Douglas Elliman and Miller Samuel.
The borough’s median rent for December was $4,334, up both month over month and year over year, the report says. Renters signed about 4,300 new leases, down from November but up almost 20% from December 2023, while listing inventory rose sharply to 9,741 apartments. The typical discount from an apartment’s original listing price was a minuscule 0.4%, and the borough’s vacancy rate was about 2.9%, according to the report.
In Brooklyn, the median rent was effectively flat month over month and year over year at $3,495, the report says. The number of new leases was similarly lower than November but roughly 20% higher than in December 2023 at about 2,700, while the listing inventory of 5,092 apartments was virtually unchanged from November but up almost 50% year over year. The listing discount was -2.8%, meaning apartments typically leased for more than their initial asking price.
And the median rent in northwest Queens dropped year over year for the first time in three months, to $3,395, a slight decrease from November as well. Tenants signed 559 new leases, down month over month but up year over year, while the listing inventory was 972 apartments, lower than in November but almost double what it was in December 2023, the report says. Apartments generally went for more than their initial asking price here as well, with a listing discount of -3.3%, according to the report.
Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel and author of the report, said the stretch of declining rents the city saw earlier this year probably won’t happen again soon, especially with mortgage rates in the housing market remaining fairly high.
“At least through the first half of the year, I would anticipate higher rents,” he said, “unless there’s a sharp change in the direction of mortgage rates, which we’re not anticipating.”
