NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — The affordability crisis in New York City has hit a new record.
Rents in Manhattan and Brooklyn reportedly soared to an all-time high last month.
The median rent in Manhattan rose to $5,000 a month in February and in Brooklyn it jumped to $4,296, according to the 2026 NYC Rental Market Report released by the Corcoran Group.
“The rent is too damn high,” Jimmy McMillan said.
This legendary line from the 2010 New York Governor’s Race never gets old, not just because it’s hilarious, but 16 years later, it’s still true.
“I think more of my friends are looking into buying now because it’s actually just for owning. It’s just more affordable in some ways to have a lower mortgage monthly payment than to pay what it is here to rent,” one Williamsburg resident said.
“I certainly wouldn’t be able to afford it. The apartment that I’m in, it’s a two-bedroom apartment. And we rent stabilization. It’s one price, but the apartment above me say is a regular, market rate. You talking $5000. How do people do it?” Dennis McDermot said.
Jonathan Miller is an expert real estate appraiser in New York and Connecticut.
“This is becoming this sort of, you know, vicious cycle. You know, affordability is being challenged not only by higher mortgage rates on the purchase market, but rising prices in the rental market. And because New York City is predominantly rental, it really impacts the market as a whole,” Miller said.
Renters, according to the report, are flocking to Gowanus, Red Hook and Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn because the construction boom of new rental buildings.
The number of leases signed was up 203 percent from last year.
“We actually just moved into our place at the end of June 2025. We had been in a walk up in Brooklyn for four years and rent wasn’t increasing so much, so we stayed there longer than we probably should have. And then we moved into a luxury building at the end of June 2025, which was a big jump up in rent for sure,” a Williamsburg renter said.
The report indicates a decrease in rent in Brooklyn hotspots is down digits in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn Heights and Prospect Park South but those numbers are deceiving.
“Some neighborhoods, we see a small drop, but that’s not a function of softening rents. That’s really just, what happens to be available that given month? That was rent it out. It is it is the long the longer term trend is just higher, a higher cost of rental in New York City,” Miller said.
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