NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) -- Manhattan apartment rents rose in February as a strong economy and tough sales market translated into a busy month for leasing.
The median rent on new leases signed last month was $4,230, up 3.3% from a year earlier, according to appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate. The monthly figure is below a record $4,400 reached last summer.
Prices in Brooklyn climbed 2.9% to $3,499 and in northwest Queens, the median was up by $1 to $3,239.
Rents typically drop during the winter, but prices eased up less than expected this year, according to Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel. Relatively low unemployment has boosted the market, and many house hunters are stuck renting as high mortgage rates make buying a property tougher.
“The economy has been too strong, for the time being at least,” he said.
Nearly 4,350 leases were signed in Manhattan in February, a 7.7% increase from a year earlier. Leases in Brooklyn jumped 62% to 2,498, while in northwest Queens — a part that includes Long Island City and Astoria — they reached a record of 591.
As spring approaches in New York City, apartment costs often start to rise. Rents climbed 1.9% month over month in Manhattan and 1.2% in Queens, while they were flat in Brooklyn. Renters may face more increases in the coming season as the market gets closer to its busiest months, Miller said.