REBNY launches inaugural Brooklyn Retail Report

New York, NY The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) has launched its first ever Brooklyn Retail Report, a new study that will analyze ground floor asking rents in 15 of the borough’s top retail corridors. In the inaugural Third Quarter 2015 Brooklyn Retail Report, Williamsburg’s Bedford Ave., between Grand St. and North 12^th St., registered the highest average asking rent of $347 per s/f.

“Brooklyn is booming and the demand for ground floor retail space is playing a major role in its continued, dynamic growth,” said REBNY president John Banks. “Complementing our existing Manhattan Retail Report, the Brooklyn Retail Report will serve as a guide for better understanding the fast growing retail leasing landscape in the booming borough.”

The joint effort between REBNY’s Brooklyn and Retail Committees will be published twice per year on the first and third quarters of the year, analyzing the average, median, and range in asking rent for ground floor space in each retail corridor. The corridors analyzed in REBNY's Brooklyn Retail Report are situated within 10 neighborhoods spanning from Greenpoint in the north to Bay Ridge in the south.

Other highlights of the Third Quarter 2015 Brooklyn Retail Report include:

• Downtown Brooklyn’s Fulton Mall, between Boerum Place and Flatbush Ave., which held the second highest average asking rent of $287 per s/f.

• Greenpoint’s Franklin Street, between Meserole Ave. and Commercial St., which recorded the lowest average asking rent in the third quarter of 2015 at $63 per s/f.

• Cobble Hill’s Court Street, between Atlantic Ave. and Carroll St., which registered an average asking rent of $162 per s/f.

• Brooklyn Heights’ Montague St., between Hicks Street and Cadman Plaza, whose average asking rent was $150 per s/f.

“REBNY’s Brooklyn Retail Report recognizes the emergence of the borough's real estate market and the ever-growing interest in Brooklyn from a broad spectrum of tenants ranging from national retailers to thriving local merchants,” said Peter Levitan of Lee & Associates NYC and Chair of REBNY’s Commercial Brokerage Brooklyn Committee. 

Robin Abrams of the Lansco Corporation, a prior chair of REBNY’s Retail Leasing Committee and the subcommittee that launched REBNY’s first Manhattan Retail Report, said, “This data-driven asking rent report will be a useful tool for monitoring the continued growth of the borough and will help retailers from all industries make more informed decisions to accommodate their real estate needs.” 

“Without reliable information on the Brooklyn retail leasing market, some tenants may be hesitant to move forward with opening new locations and expanding their brands in the borough,” said Mitzi Flexer, of Cushman & Wakefield and a member of REBNY’s Retail Leasing Committee.

Nicole Liebman of Cushman & Wakefield and member of REBNY’s Commercial Brokerage Brooklyn Committee, said, “With the collaboration of tracked data based on a number of key market indicators, brokers, owners and tenants will have a more thorough understanding of the Brooklyn retail environment, which has become a critical market for established retailers.” 

“This comprehensive report will help decision makers to better understand these factors and anticipate where the market is heading,” said Diana Boutross of Winick Realty Group and member of REBNY’s Commercial Brokerage Brooklyn Committee.

The data for the inaugural Brooklyn Retail Report was provided by REBNY brokers from both the Brooklyn and Retail Committees and comprised of asking rent prices for their current, available ground floor retail listings in the third quarter of 2015.

In order to provide a rich statistical context to evaluate the current market conditions, future iterations of REBNY’s Brooklyn Retail Report will provide up-to-date asking rent data, comparing the current average, median, and range in asking rents for these 15 corridors, to those from six months and 12 months prior.