Northwest Queens experienced year-over-year increases in October 2024 of new leases being signed for the 13th straight month and of listing inventory for the ninth month in a row, according to a report by the real estate firm Douglas Elliman Real Estate.
The signing of new leases across northwest Queens increased by 71.3% over the last year, from 422 in October 2023 to 723 in October 2024. New leases for each type of unit—studios, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom—rose over this period.
The most significant jump was among one-bedroom units, which saw 197 new leases last year and 342 this year. The second-highest bump was seen with two-bedroom units, which rose from 130 to 229. Studios saw an increase from 65 last year to 115 this year. Lastly, three-bedroom units saw new leases climb from 30 last year to 39 this year.
The inventory of listings throughout this part of the borough rose 64% over the same period, from 572 in October 2023 to 938 in October 2024. A lack of leasing discounts continued to play a big role in such a significant boost for the inventory of listings, with the discounts being negative, from -1% last year to -2.5% this year. Not only are potential renters not getting discounts, but they end up paying more.
Another common trend concerns the inventory of luxury listings, which is defined as units in the top 10% of all rentals. For the 12th month in a row, the luxury listing inventory had a year-over-year increase, tripling from 33 in October 2023 to 99 in October 2024.
One major change from recent trends was that the median rental price went up year-over-year for the first time in eight months. There was a 4.8% increase, from $3,198 in October 2023 to $3,350 in October 2024. An expansion of mortgage rates was a key contributing factor to this change.
