NEW YORK (AP) -- The average rent for a Manhattan studio is around $2,000 (euro1,451), and a one-bedroom in New York's most expensive borough goes for more than $2,700 (euro1,959), according a report released Friday by the New York rental brokerage firm Citi Habitats.
The figures show "we're the center of everything," said spokesman Christopher Dente. "There's a lot of relocation -- thousands of people are coming in."
Rents in San Francisco and Boston, which were also among the highest in the United States, generally pale in comparison to Manhattan, according to Marcus & Millichap, a California-based real estate investment broker that surveyed rents in cities around America.
At the end of 2006, the average monthly rent in San Francisco was $1,685 (euro1,222), according to Marcus & Millichap. Average rent for all of New York's five boroughs was $2,553 (euro1,852), the real estate broker said. However, Citi Habitats' average rent for only Manhattan apartments was higher at $2,825 (euro2,049).
Boston came in right behind San Francisco, with a general rent average of $1,632 (euro1,184).
Dente attributed Manhattan's bulging rents to New York's strong economy. In addition, the U.S. dollar is low against foreign currencies, "and we're a very popular destination for foreigners," Dente said.
Last year's rent for a studio in Manhattan, according to Citi Habitats, was $1,995 (euro1,447), compared to $1,659 (euro1,203) in 2002. A one-bedroom was $2,737 (euro1,985), compared to $2,227 (euro1,615) five years earlier; and $3,893 (euro2,824) for two bedrooms, versus $3,198 (euro2,320) in 2002.
Citi Habitats based its data on 50,000 deals the firm closed from 2002 to 2006.
About 75 percent of housing in Manhattan is comprised of rental properties. The company did not analyze properties in the New York's other boroughs -- Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island, where rent is generally cheaper. The study also does not include Manhattan apartments subject to rent-control or rent-stabilization -- at least 10 percent of available properties.
The overall rental vacancy rate for Manhattan last year was less than 1 percent, with the lowest rates in the West Village, SoHo and Tribeca, at less than one-half percent. The most dramatic drop was in the East Village neighborhood, where vacancy rates dropped from 6 percent to less than 1 percent.
Gary Malin, City Habitats' chief operating officer, said that since the analysis was completed six months ago, Manhattan rents have risen an additional 4 percent to 8 percent.
"The market is tightening up significantly," he said. "This is a hot time of the year," he said, meaning not just summer but also "with a lot of people coming in -- out of college and grad school. The demand on the city is very high."
