Only non-doorman studios see rent increases in 2008

The only units to see average rents increase last year were studios in non-doorman buildings. However, in a sign of the times for real estate, that jump was less than one percent, according to a report released today by the Real Estate Group New York. The average rent in studios in non-doorman buildings increased .71 percent in 2008, compared to 2007, increasing to $2,123. Meanwhile, the average price of one-bedroom units in non-doorman buildings fell 1.78 percent to $2,865; and two-bedroom units fell .78 percent to $4,000. In doorman buildings, the average price of studios fell 2.24 percent to $2,616; one-bedroom prices fell .35 percent to $3,726; and two-bedroom units fell .24 percent to $5,603. The neighborhoods with some of the biggest price decreases during 2008 included Harlem, Gramercy Park and the Lower East Side. The average rents for two-bedroom units in Gramercy Park non-doorman buildings, for example, fell 20 percent. TRD