Brooklyn Rents Are Lowest They've Been In 10 Years, Study Finds

BROOKLYN, NY — Renters looking for a new home in Brooklyn are more likely to score a deal on an apartment now than they have been in the past decade, according to a new study.

A Streeteasy report on the first quarter of 2021 shows that New York City rent prices that have been dropping since the start of the coronavirus pandemic hit new record level lows at the start of the year.

And while the steepest drops are still in Manhattan, Brooklyn also hit milestones, both in the median prices for apartments and the number of deals landlords are willing to offer new tenants.

"Rents fell [in Brooklyn] by 10% year-over-year, the largest annual decline the borough has ever experienced," researchers said. "This shows that, while demand for apartments in Brooklyn might be higher than the levels seen in Manhattan, there are still deals to be had."

The median asking rent in Brooklyn in the first quarter of 2021 stood at $2,390, the lowest it has been since 2011.

For about a quarter of those listings, 25.4 percent, landlords advertised a concession in the form of at least one month's free rent, a record-high for concessions in Brooklyn, according to the study. The share of apartments with concessions offered in Manhattan stood at 44 percent.

The overall price drops didn't hit every neighborhood equally, though.

In Brooklyn, the decrease in median price between 2020 and 2021 ranged anywhere from 0 percent in places like Brownsville, to as much as 24 percent in Carroll Gardens.

Researchers specifically pointed out record-lows in North Brooklyn, where the median asking rent for a one-bedroom is the lowest its been in 10 years at $2,500 in 2021. North Brooklyn includes Williamsburg and Greenpoint in StreetEasy's mapping.

The real estate experts advised that while they won't last forever, the rent prices are likely to stay down for at least the foreseeable future.

“Renters don’t need to rush to sign a new lease this second to claim a great deal, though,” StreetEasy economist Nancy Wu said. “It will take time for prices to rebound. But the rentals market does react to economic activity much more quickly than the sales market. As the city continues to recover, competition will slowly start to pick up.”

Check out the full report here.