Why Record-Low Rents Could Revitalize NYC Retail

The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), the City’s leading real estate trade association, today reported that asking retail rents throughout Manhattan have declined in 16 of the 17 reported corridors, as the market continues to adjust more than a year after the COVID-19 pandemic first hit New York City. According to REBNY’s Spring 2021 Manhattan Retail Report (attached), average asking price per square foot (PPSF) rents throughout Manhattan’s retail corridors fell by as much as 37% year-over-year. Corridors located in neighborhoods with strong residential bases typically have seen less of a decline than those dependent on tourists and office workers. For example, the average asking rent in the Upper East Side has declined 15% since Spring 2019, compared to the Madison Ave and Fifth Ave corridors which experienced declines of more than 25% during the same time period. Read more at Real Estate Weekly.