Manhattan retail rents rise

Despite the economic slowdown, Manhattan retail rents increased in prime shopping corridors over the past six months as tourists continued to spend freely, a report released today from the Real Estate Board of New York said.

Manhattan retail rents grew by 3 percent compared to a year ago to an average of $111 per square foot, the report said.

Not all the news was good. In some areas rents fell, including on Madison Avenue from 57th to 72nd street, where the average asking rent fell by 8 percent to $1,066 per square foot.

In Midtown, the average asking rent rose by 9 percent to $145 per foot; in Midtown South, rents rose by 8 percent to $96; and in Midtown East rents rose by 6 percent to $164.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

The city’s highest rents were found on the ten blocks south from 59th Street on Fifth Avenue, where asking rents averaged $1,958 per square foot.

The survey reported a strong increase in rents in Herald Square and Soho’s Broadway district and the most dramatic increases on Third Avenue between 60th and 72nd streets.

“While the volume of retail leasing activity is strong, we are seeing that tenants appear to be taking a longer time to make decisions and to complete deals,” REBNY president Steven Spinola said in a statement.