The Real Deal New York

From the August issue: In what some brokers contend is a sign of a softening rental market, open houses for rentals, once rare, are now proliferating. The increase comes as the rental market cools amid rising inventory and as owners find themselves competing for qualified tenants. Anecdotal reports point to a glut of recently purchased investment condos that aren’t fetching what owners sought. These are now on the rental market until prices rebound. Though the busy rental season usually runs from April 1 to Labor Day, 2008 started out surprisingly slow and didn’t take off until around May 1, said Clifford Finn, managing director at Citi Habitats.