Manhattan Apartment Rents Retreat in March Manhattan's median apartment rent, which for the past three months looked like it was heading back to the all-time record of $4,400 notched last summer, dropped to $4,100 in March.The median for March represented a 3.1% drop from February's level of $4,230, the first decline in the benchmark since November, according to the latest Elliman Report."After months of increases, consistent with seasonality, median rent unexpectedly declined," the report said.Not all of the Manhattan benchmarks in the March report were consistent with a downward shift in the market. The number of new leases in the borough, which in November dropped below 3,400, continued to grow: new leases tallied 4,775 in March, a 9.8% increase from February's total of 4,349.The share of landlord concessions in Manhattan also wasn't consistent with the decline in median rent: concessions dropped to 13.1%, down from 15.2% in February. The market share of bidding wars, a proxy for new leases signed above the landlord's asking price, was 20%, the highest level since the summer of 2022.Manhattan's vacancy rate ticked down to 2.42% in March from the 2.49% rate in February, while the listing inventory decline by 4.1% to 7,639 from the previous month's level of 7,966.The median rent in Brooklyn has plateaued for the past three months. The March median of $3,495 is within a few dollars of February's level of $3,499 and January's benchmark of $3,500.Despite the relatively flat median rents, the number of new leases in Brooklyn continued to surge in March, rising by more than 23% to 3,082 from February's total of 2,498. The tally of new leases in Brooklyn has grown by nearly 46% in a year-over-year comparison.The share of landlord concessions in Brooklyn was 16.9% in March, up from 14.8% in February. The market share of bidding wars in the borough hit 25.3%, the same percentage as February, the highest share on record.The median rent in Northwest Queens dipped slightly in March to $3,200, a 1.2% decline from February's benchmark of $3,239. The number of new leases surged by 19% to 704 from 591 in February, while the listing inventory jumped by nearly 32% to 717.The share of landlord concessions in Queens increased to 14.1% in March from February's 12.1%, consistent with the decline in median rent, the report said.Net Lease Spring:Held April 16-17 in NYC, Net Lease Spring will bring together hundreds of dealmakers from the nation’s top firms. This year’s program will feature 5.5 hours of face-to-face networking and over 5 hours of content focused on micro and macro trends for 2024, being resilient through market volatility, how to serve your corporate tenant clients and much more! Learn more or register here. Multifamily Spring:Multifamily Spring is coming to New York City this April 18. This year’s program will bring together the industry's most influential and knowledgeable real estate executives from the multifamily sector for 5 hours of face-to-face networking and over 5.5 hours of can’t miss sessions. Learn more or register here.