Vacancy rate of Manhattan apartment rose to the highest level since August 2006.
According to the report by Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate, there is a significant increase of Manhattan's apartment vacancy rate this year compared to the last nine years. The report stated that the rate of vacancies as of November 2015 is 2.87 percent, a much higher record compared to last year's rate of 2.31 percent.
The president of Miller Samuel Inc., Jonathan Miller, said that the increase in the number of available apartments may mean that renters are now in the highest limits of their capability to pay since the continuous rent growth started four years ago. "We're reaching the point where things can't go up as much," Miller said in an interview. "The economics don't make much sense anymore."
The median monthly apartment rent for the month of November also increased to 3.9 percent a year ago to $3,361, Bloomberg reported. The end of the recession in June 2009 paved way to the improvement of New York's job market, driving more people to go in Manhattan. The competition in the housing market climbed up since Manhattan is already crowded with people staying in their apartments planning to buy a home.
According to Miller, the rents are still high and the factors affecting its increase haven't changed. "What's changed is the acceptance of it, the affordability of it," he said. Miller has been following and observing the apartment market since 1991. "Complaining about high rents in Manhattan is nothing new, but now it's becoming more visceral to tenants. We're hitting the point where affordability is really becoming a much bigger issue than it has been in the past," he added.
Presently, Manhattan landlords are facing a tight competition with neighboring boroughs -- new luxurious towers in Brooklyn and Queens. Manhattan's establishments offer services like doormen and fitness centers. Similarly, Brooklyn and Queens' provide these services but in a much lower price.
