NYC overtakes San Francisco as the country’s most expensive rental market: report

As rents across the city begin to return to pre-pandemic levels, New York has reportedly surpassed San Francisco as the country’s most expensive rental market.

The median rent for a bedroom in New York is now $ 2,810, slightly higher than the San Francisco average of $ 2,800, according to a new report from the real estate website Zumper.

This is the first time New York has taken the top spot since the site began tracking rental prices in 2014. Just two years ago, the gap between the two cities was over $ 800.

But while both urban areas have seen rents drop as residents fled during the early days of the pandemic, cities have taken very different trajectories in recent months.

Rents have jumped nearly 20% in New York this year, compared to less than 5% in San Francisco – a gap that may be fueled in part by the number of remote tech workers in the Bay Area who have given up entirely. in the city.

Other signs point to a rapid recovery in rents in New York – and more. According to a recent report by Douglas Elliman, the number of new leases signed in Manhattan, Brooklyn and northwest Queens last month was the highest for a July in at least a decade.

The rapid resurgence is particularly evident in Manhattan zip codes which saw an exodus of wealthy residents early in the pandemic. Neighborhoods like Flatiron, the East Village and the Financial District now have rents above pre-COVID levels, according to a new report from StreetEasy.

According to Nancy Wu, an economist at StreetEasy, this trend is the result of homeowners exploiting pent-up demand and trying to “make up for the time and money lost during the lull of the pandemic by raising prices and wiping out discounts. “.

“Potential tenants must prepare for tougher negotiations over the next few months as New York rents continue to rise,” she added. “But I expect price growth and homeowner expectations to normalize as the colder months approach.”