Unlike its sales market, the Manhattan luxury rental market saw a sizzling hot August, as both the number of new leases and median rents rose sharply, according to monthly reports released by Douglas Elliman Thursday.
The number of luxury rentals, defined as the top 10% most expensive leases with a threshold of $6,250 per month, rose to 708 in August, representing a 12.6% increase year-over-year. Median luxury rent edged up to $8,000 per month, up 1.8%.
The luxury rental market in Manhattan also gained more ground compared to July. The number of luxury leases jumped 15.1% month-over-month in August while median rent rose 1.6%.
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The average apartment size for luxury rentals was 1,704 square feet, increasing 6.7% year-over-year and almost double the size of apartments in the remaining 90% of the market, which averaged 805 square feet, according to Jonathan Miller, chief executive of real estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel and author of the reports.
"Last month, there were more closings in the new rental developments, which tend to be larger and more expensive than the average stock," Mr. Miller said.
Super-luxury rentals, those with a monthly rent of $10,000 and up, saw a sharper increase in leasing activity. The number of new leases signed during August increased 29.4% year-over-year to 211.
This segment accounted for 3% of all the new leases in August, with a median rent of $13,500, according to Mr. Miller.
In the overall Manhattan rental market, 7,061 new leases were transacted in August, rising 12.3% from a year ago and marking the largest number in over nine years. Median rent for all Manhattan was $3,442 per month, up 1.3% from August 2016.
In Brooklyn, median rents for 166 new luxury leases reached $5,500 per month, up 0.6% from a year ago. This is in line with Brooklyn’s overall rental market, where the median rent increased 0.2% to $2,900 per month.
In Northwest Queens, where the borough’s new luxury developments are concentrated, median luxury rent for 36 new leases increased 1.8% to $4,830. New developments account about 43% of luxury leases in this area.
The median rent in Northwest Queens for August was $2,859, down 1.2% from the same period last year.