More Renters Flock To BK Neighborhoods Far From Manhattan: Study

BROOKLYN, NY — Renters looking for low prices are flocking to neighborhoods further and further from Manhattan, and will likely keep doing so next year, a study found.

Four of the six Brooklyn spots that made a "Neighborhoods to Watch in 2020" list are deeper into the borough than in past years, with the furthest from Manhattan on the ranking, Midwood, becoming more popular than many of the closer options, the StreetEasy report shows.

Midwood rose above Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens and East Flatbush on the ranking, which is based on renter interest and rising prices, though they still didn't surpass some of the usual hotspots, Williamsburg and Clinton Hill.

Researchers contended that the shift is likely due to renters looking for lower options as rents rise citywide, but only to those far-from-Manhattan spots that still have reliable transit options.

"As rents rise across the city, New Yorkers are looking to neighborhoods in the outer boroughs that still offer convenient subway access," the experts said. "Excluding Williamsburg and Clinton Hill, however, the Brooklyn neighborhoods that dominate this year’s list appear in inverse order of their proximity to Manhattan...However far out they may be, these neighborhoods offer residents a reasonable walk to the 2, 5, B, or Q trains."

The StreetEasy report measures the number of new buildings in each New York City neighborhood in the last year and then looks at median rent price, median sale price, the number of searches for the neighborhood on the StreetEasy and how much each of those has grown in the last year.

Williamsburg took the top "neighborhood to watch" spot with 41 new residential buildings developed in the last year, a 7 percent increase in rent prices and a 48 percent increase in searches on StreetEasy.

Clinton Hill, with a 21 percent increase in interest and a 10 percent rise in median rent, took the second place spot.

Midwood followed in fourth with 28 percent more searches this year and East Flatbush, Prospect Lefferts Gardens and Crown Heights rounded out the Brooklyn neighborhoods with sixth, seventh and 10th place, respectively.Two Queens spots, one Bronx neighborhood and one Manhattan spot rounded out the top 10.