Apartment rentals New York with New Construction Rental Buildings

Conversion Provides Relief For Manhattan Renters

290mulberryFor many Manhattan residents, finding a New York City apartment can seem like a near impossibility, as rents are currently at historic highs. However, several new rental buildings are beginning to surface, with 2,596 new units joining the Manhattan market in 2012. Although vacancy rates are at all-time lows, these new Manhattan rental apartments will surely provide renters with a fresh array of options. This is good news in the long-run too: more inventory means that all that pent-up demand for Manhattan rentals will finally have an outlet. If this trend of new construction and pre-war conversion continues, it will definitely help Manhattan’s sky-high rents come down to earth.

Avenues School Looks to Transform West Chelsea

Avenues: The World School will transform West ChelseaStarting in the fall of 2012, a world-class K-12 school will take root in West Chelsea, the first of its kind in this up-and-coming neighborhood. Apartment renters near the Avenues School, a “global school” that aims to build an international network of 20 schools all over the world, will find themselves next to one of the most innovative and forward-thinking New York City schools in recent memory. West Chelsea has already undergone a revolution of sorts thanks to the High Line Parknew construction of high-end luxury rental apartments has flourished in the past half-dozen years – but the Avenues School will usher in the next phase of transforming West Chelsea into a full-fledged neighborhood.

Housing Market Index Promising For National and Manhattan Rental Market

The National AssociNew construction in Manhattanation of Home Builders, in conjunction with Wells Fargo, released their monthly Housing Market Index last month, and the report, which gauges builder confidence in the housing market nationwide, provided some promising new information. Nationally, builder confidence in new construction is higher than it has been since before the market crash, and while the index number is still relatively low—standing in February at 29—it is on a consistently upward trajectory, and is now the highest it has been since May 2007. While the report does not touch on individual markets, it does imply good news for builders and renters of apartments in Manhattan.

The Island of Manhattan Still Has Room to Grow

Manhattan may be an island, but apartment inventory is unlimitedIt’s an old story at this point, but if you’ve been following the Manhattan rental apartment market at all, you know the drill: vacancy is down, rents are up, new construction is scarce, and concessions are rare. Among the many explanations as to how we got here - and there are plenty - one of the most prominent is that Manhattan is a small island where space is limited, hence the lack of inventory. The reality is that this real estate platitude is a lazy way of analyzing our current market, one which obscures far more accurate explanations. For instance, the tight credit market for large new construction projects, government restrictions such as historic districts, and long-standing preconceived notions about certain Manhattan neighborhoods have a far greater influence on Manhattan’s rental apartment inventory than the size of the island.

Mercedes House Revving Up for Its Opening As It Nears Completion

Mercedes House Luxury Apartments in New York CityThe Mercedes name conjures up images of luxury and grandeur. These same images that are associated with the car company are associated with Mercedes House, which gets its name from the fact that it houses the Mercedes-Benz of Manhattan showroom. It is safe to say that this is one of the few opportunities in Manhattan to live above a car showroom. Unfortunately, it will not be like Oprah, where everyone gets a free car, but there are many other reasons why this building is being talked about.

One of the more notable things about the Mercedes House is its interesting design. The building rises up with a step-like pattern, one section being a story higher than the next. At one end of the lot, the building turns and continues its step-like like ascent into the skies.

This spectacular rental condominium building in Clinton is nearing completion. There is only one section of the building that needs to be completed, but condominiums are already on the market. Mercedes House is one of the newest condominium buildings with luxury rental listings to hit the market in New York City. A truly unique building is a seemingly perfect fit for the unique city that is Manhattan.

Middle of Manhattan, Top of the World: New Luxury Rental MiMA Looking Like A Blockbuster

Manhattan real estate is the land of acronyms and abbreviations, and from Soho apartment listings to FiDi rentals to apartments on the LES, it's one that New Yorkers speak every day without even noticing it. So, in a certain sense, MiMA -- a hybrid new luxury rental and condominium building from The Related Companies whose name is short for Middle of Manhattan -- fits right in. In just about every other way, though, MiMA stands out -- for its location on 42nd Street and 10th Avenue, at the heart of booming Clinton; for its stellar suite of amenities; for its luxurious (and not-at-all cheap) apartments for rent. MiMA is as ambitious and extravagantly amenitized a new construction luxury rental development as Manhattan has seen since... well, since Midtown West neighbor The Ashley, probably. But MiMA is also further proof that Manhattan's high-end rental market is returning to robust health -- Manhattan rental listings don't come much more luxurious than this.

The Crunch To Come: Is the NYC Rental Market Facing A Looming Inventory Crisis?

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We'll admit it: there are better places to go for economic analysis than the Luxury Rentals Manhattan blog. Which is fine, since we're mostly about point people towards no-fee rental listings and NYC rentals and less about detailed microeconomic position papers. Everyone's cool with that. But it has been interesting, during the tenuous but ongoing comeback in the Manhattan rental market, to se basic economic fundamentals getting a real world star turn -- and behaving more or less as the textbooks say they should. If you've been reading the blog -- or even just following Manhattan real estate -- you've seen it, too. From the way that prices have spiked as vacancies have gone down to the near-disappearance of concessions and incentives on NYC rentals, Manhattan real estate has been exceptionally logical of late. Not always kind, and certainly enough to send many renters looking back wistfully at the good old days of the renter's market, but logical. But if there's something reassuring in that logic, there's also something somewhat menacing about it, considering that what looks like a possible inventory crunch in the Manhattan rental market could send prices spiking in months to come. Economic rules: can't live with 'em, can't... well, you know the rest.

Remember The Good Times: Concessions Seemingly On The Way Out In 2011

We talk about the renter's market here at the Luxury Rentals Manhattan blog the way that older men in bars talk about their high school football days, but we do so for a reason -- those were good times to be in the market for Manhattan rental apartments. Not only were rents down -- or, at the very least, flat -- but concessions abounded from the bottom of the market to the top. As the renter's market has receded during the NYC rental market's return to form, those concessions have become harder nad harder to find. They're still out there, of course -- there are plenty of no-fee rental listings in Manhattan and, oddly enough, concessions are still available to find at new construction luxury rentals such as The Ohm and 808 Columbus Avenue -- but concessions have been harder and harder to come by in recent months, despite widespread hopes that there would be a concession bounce-back in the fall. Just-released fourth-quarter statistics make it plain -- the last few months have seen the number of concessions fall by more than half from where they were in January of 2010 and are roughly a third of what they were at the end of 2009. Good news for landlords, in short, but less so for those hunting for Manhattan rental apartments. Combine this with a bump in rents and a low vacancy rate, and it's hard to find a silver lining in all this. Luckily, it's out there.

Something Old At Someplace New: New Construction Luxury Rentals Prove Last Holdout For Rent Concessions In Manhattan Real Estate

It's a pretty common refrain here at the Luxury Rentals Manhattan blog that the return of the Manhattan rental market to something like its old gangbusters status is a good thing. That's because, in a macro sense, it is. But it's also because we're working on talking ourselves into it. The renter's market of the great Manhattan rental market slump was tough on landlords and developers, but it was great news for those browsing NYC rental apartments, who suddenly found themselves faced with a wealth of no-fee rental listings and landlords seemingly eager to give away months of free rent and other other concessions. Now that the Manhattan rental market is healthier, the renter's market is generally a thing of the past -- a fondly remembered silver lining surrounding an ever-shrinking cloud, if you're a metaphor type, and a casualty of economic trends if you're more literally inclined. But, as we try to remind readers (and ourselves), there are still great deals to be found on Manhattan rental apartments. There are still plenty of no-fee rental listings out there, for instance, and there are also plenty of Manhattan luxury rentals offering concessions on leases. The surprising part, though, is the identity of those concession-granting Manhattan luxury rentals. From The Ohm -- a new construction luxury rental in Chelsea pictured near these words -- to a host of other new construction rental listings in various Manhattan neighborhoods, some of Manhattan's most concession-friendly rental listings happen to be at some of Manhattan's hottest new construction apartment buildings. No, really. More after the jump.

The Recovery Continues, Part 23: Atlantic Development Announces Two New Luxury Rental Buildings in East Village and Chelsea

The ongoing economic recovery is good news both for Manhattan real estate developers and everyone who, you know, participates in the economy. That seems obvious, but it's worth mentioning mostly because all the recovery-related news here at the Luxury Rentals Manhattan job could easily be mistaken for a bummer by people searching for Manhattan rental apartments. Here there's news that NYC dwellers can no longer expect generous concessions on their Manhattan rental apartments. There there's news that Manhattan no-fee rental listings are not-so-gradually becoming an endangered species. Yes, it's good that the economy is apparently bouncing back. But where's the benefit for those looking for a Manhattan rental apartment? Well, it's coming, through what looks like a bumper crop of new construction luxury rental buildings that should arrive over the next year or two.