Rental-heavy brokerage The Real Estate Group New York has released the May edition of its Manhattan Rental Market Report (available to download here), and while rents stayed largely flat over last month, the year-to-year declines can be seen in the tables above. TREGNY also cites increased demand over the past month as a sign that the typically hot Manhattan spring/summer rental season will have life this year. Graduates should check out non-doorman buildings on the Upper East Side, where rents are at a 13-month low.
While the report doesn't factor in landlord incentives that drive rents down even lower, the May '07 to May '09 head-to-head neighborhood comparisons that TREGNY includes will still open some eyes to the state of the rental market. Neighborhoods such as Murray Hill, Midtown East and the East Village have seen some approx. 20% drops in certain categories over the past two years. Getting back to the here and now, below is a neighborhood snapshot of May rents (click on the graphics to make 'em bigger):
