Although asking rents fell in residential buildings in almost every sector of the Manhattan market during the last quarter, anecdotal evidence suggests people are negotiating rents as much as 20 percent lower than the original listing price. Landlords are also including incentives like a month of free rent and offering to pay the broker’s fee, which also helps renters save money. Fritz Frigan, executive director of sales and leasing at Halstead Property, said that when the incentives are factored in, rents are actually down 10 percent to 15 percent since the market peak in mid-2007. In January 2008, 90 of Halstead’s listings had landlords offering to pay the broker’s fee, which was up to 450 listings by the summer. Between December and January 2009, 1,700 of Halstead’s 9,000 total rental listings included landlords offering to pay a broker’s fees. The Real Deal looks at the rental market in its February issue.