For $10,000 a month, you could have your morning coffee out here.
The newest data out on average Upper West Side rental rates shows a dropoff in rates for certain types of apartments in November, including studios and two-bedrooms in buildings with doormen, according to a rental market report from MNS.
Below, check out the average rents for different types of apartments in the neighborhood.
November 2013
- Studio (with doorman) $2,611
- Studio (no doorman) $2,156
- One-bedroom (with doorman) $3,625
- One-bedroom (no doorman) $2,894
- Two-bedroom (with doorman) $5,655
- Two bedroom (no doorman) $4,117
Here’s how they get the info, which is compiled by MNS’ marketing department:
The Manhattan Rental Market Report™ is based on data cross-sectioned from over 10,000 currently available listings located below 155th Street and priced under $10,000, with ultra-luxury property omitted to obtain a true monthly rental average. Our data is aggregated from the MNS proprietary database and sampled from a specific mid-month point to record current rental rates offered by landlords during that particular month. It is then combined with information from the REBNY Real Estate Listings Source (RLS), OnLine Residential (OLR. com) and R.O.L.E.X. (Real Plus).
It’s my estimation that the neighborhood has hit its high. The only qualification I have is to say is that for a dozen years, I was a moderately successful private commodity trader – and apartments are basically commodities. With all the construction and renovation going on, the market is reaching an oversupply (like a bumper crop of wheat or soybeans that will drive prices lower) situation. What the Upper West Side offered that made it desireable (familiy, folksy, funky) is disappearing…as more and more residential units are coming to market. To support this I offer two examples. One: my friend who owned three brownstones (free and clear) on the UWS. He just sold the trio and is on his way to Long Island City and his dream 35th floor manse…and second, a good friend with an exceptionally attractive 3 bedroom in an iconic prewar building who is having a tough time selling it (2 price reductions so far). Here on the Upper West Side, the speculators are in full bloom, but they are always looking for the next best thing. The party may be over.
An important attraction of the Upper West Side has been the diversity of its population. But that is ending: the median income for the Upper West Side is over $181,000 – but the median income for rent stabilized NYC tenants is $37,000 according to the Rent Guidelines Board ($28,000 for rent controlled tenants). The disparity encourages landlords to drive out those who cannot possibly afford the market rents (even if slightly lower than before). And that reduces diversity. With landlords able to de-regulate every empty apartment (by “improving” them to rent for $2500 or more), and with only the next tenants able to challenge that improvement, our neighborhood is losing its affordability, diversity, and stability.
Evidently I fell victim to the real estate industry’s hype. While one site mentions $181,000 as the median income, the US Census Bureau lists the median household incomes for 10023 at $105,260, for 10024 at $111,582, and for 10025 at $64,592. The 10025 income is evidently lower because it includes the Frederick Douglass Houses, a NYCHA project.
But the point is the same: we all do better with a neighborhood that is ethnically and economically diverse and stable.
well said!