Queens Multifamily Report – Summer 2019
The borough's rents increased just 0.6 percent year-over-year through April, partially due to New York City's pressing affordability issues and regulatory uncertainty.
Queens rent evolution, click to enlarge
The Queens multifamily market continues to show signs of growth, albeit slowly and predominantly in areas close to Manhattan and along major transit corridors. Queens rents were up just 0.6 percent year-over-year through April, partially due to the metro’s affordability issues. However, although 2018 was a banner year for deliveries, the borough’s 98.9 percent occupancy rate in stabilized properties was the highest in the country as of March.
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Queens sales volume and number of properties sold, click to enlarge
New York City added 103,300 jobs in the 12 months ending in March, which marks a 1.4 percent rise, just 20 basis points below the U.S. figure. Two sectors—education and health services, and professional and business services—provided nearly three-quarters of these gains. Although Amazon’s decision to scrap its HQ2 plans in Long Island City took some by surprise, Queens’ economy and multifamily market remained mostly unfazed, at least in the short run. Due to its proximity to Manhattan, Long Island City continues to be a development hotbed, recording, by far, both the highest average rent and the largest pipeline in the borough.
Regulatory uncertainty and pressing affordability issues are likely to keep rent growth incremental across the metro. With supply powering through, we expect the average New York City rent to advance 0.7 percent in 2019.
