'I Live in Brooklyn. By Choice.'

This isn’t super newsy, but it’s still fun to highlight: In-demand Brooklyn neighborhoods are catching up with in-demand Manhattan neighborhoods in terms of rents. The Brooklyn Ink has a story doing the compare/contrast thing on rents in the center of the universe versus those in Brooklyn based on stats from the firm MNS. Yes, rents are still higher in most Manhattan neighborhoods, but there are exceptions: Average one-bedroom rents in Dumbo ($3,584) are higher than those on the Upper East Side for both doorman and non-doorman buildings. And other A-list Brooklyn neighborhoods are bringing the heat too: “Williamsburg, Brooklyn Heights and DUMBO have been comparable with Manhattan for the last three to four years. And in the last two years Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill have accelerated in price, [says Samantha Behringer, a Prudential Douglas Elliman Associate Broker]. In Boerum Hill one bedrooms went from $2,170 in January 2011 to $2,750 a year later, an increase of about 27 percent. In Manhattan neighborhoods, such as Harlem, certain areas of the Financial District, Northern Manhattan and Midtown West, a renter can find a comparable or even cheaper apartment.” This has been a trend for awhile now, but the old saw we’ve heard time and again is that you can get more bang for your buck in Brooklyn in the form of more spacious apartments. Wonder if that’s still the case, or if Brooklyn landlords are increasingly chopping up spaces these days to fit more refugees fleeing from across the river.
Is Brooklyn Still a Bargain? [The Brooklyn Ink] via Brooklyn Heights Blog