Prudential Douglas Elliman 4th Quarter 2009 Manhattan Rental Market Overview

NEW YORK, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The 4th Quarter 2009 Prudential Douglas Elliman Manhattan Rental Market Overview shows that rental price indicators, excluding concessions, were below levels seen in the same period a year ago, but began to show signs of stability since the prior quarter.  One of the reasons for the easing in the decline of rental prices has been the surge in the number of rentals from the same period last year as well as the decline in rental inventory.

"The Manhattan rental market is performing better than expected for this time of year," stated Dottie Herman, President/CEO of PDE. "Rental prices began to stabilize in the fourth quarter of 2009.  Rental activity is up 47.5% compared to this time last year and as a result, there are fewer listings available.  We believe the trend will continue through the spring as the economy begins to improve.  Although the New York City market has many challenges ahead, a stable rental market is a great way to enter 2010."

The Manhattan Rental Market overview incorporates similar metrics used in our Manhattan Market Overview enabling like comparisons between rentals and sales trends.  The report includes analysis by average rental price, median rental price, rental price per square foot, number of rentals, days on market, listing discount and listing inventory.  Rental markets are also subdivided by location, number of bedrooms, doorman, luxury and loft amenities.  A quarterly format was selected over a monthly format due to the limited reliability of a smaller data set when analyzing submarket trends.

Key Trend Metrics

- Average rental price declined 4.3% to $3,789 from $3,958 the same period last year but up 0.8% from $3,759 the prior quarter.

- Rental price per square foot declined 4.6% to $47.02 per square foot from $49.30 per square foot during the same period last year, and down 1.7% from $47.84 per square foot in the prior quarter.