Unaffordable Rents in Brooklyn vs. Other Boroughs

The New York City Comptroller’s office has published a study on the affordability (or unaffordability, depending on how you view it) of rents in New York City. The study, called “New York Rents Through the Roof!” is based on 2010 and 2011 data from a city housing and vacancy survey and the U.S. Census. First, the overall picture: The vacancy rate is 3 percent (vs. 10 percent nationally), and nearly 70 percent of New Yorkers are renters, vs. 33 percent nationally. Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, 36 percent of middle-income residents are paying “unaffordable” rents (defined as more than 30 percent of their income). Middle-income residents are households earning between $35,000 and $74,999 per year. Only five percent of high-income households — those earning $75,000 and up — are paying “unaffordable” rents in Brooklyn. Somewhat counterintuitively, for middle-income renters, Brooklyn is the second most affordable borough, after the Bronx. Manhattan is third, and Queens and Staten Island are the least affordable, in that order. The lowest-income households, making less than $35,000 per year, have it pretty bad everywhere, with 83 to 91 percent of them paying “unaffordable” rents throughout New York City. In case you’re wondering, over the years, rents have increased relative to income. In 1980, 39 percent of New Yorkers paid “unaffordable” rents. In 2010, it was 49 percent. The study notes that the Bronx and Manhattan have the most rent-regulated housing and Staten Island the least; it also recommends government focus on increasing the affordability of housing for middle-income residents.