Brooklyn developers flooding 7 neighborhoods with new rentals - as many locals remain priced out of homeownership

"Brooklyn is known for brownstones, churches and - in recent years - lots of rental apartment construction. When combined, Brooklyn and Queens became a larger rental market than Manhattan in 2025, with Kings County's busy developers at the tip of the spear. The data comes from StreetEasy's most recent market report, which compiled the top 10 New York City neighborhoods for new rental construction. Powerhouse Brooklyn took seven out of 10 slots."

"New developments largely concentrated in Central and South Brooklyn yielded 9,875 units in January, according to StreetEasy. Housing-focused rezonings over the last two decades have paved the way for residential construction in growing enclaves like Gowanus and Crown Heights. The growth arrives alongside a citywide dip in sales volume for multi-family buildings, Crain's New York reported, as investors shy away from older, rent-stabilized buildings."

"Recently rezoned Gowanus is in the midst of a major rebrand, from polluted industrial site to developer-friendly hotspot. A brand-new rental tower there even secured a $25,000-a-month tenant this month. The uptick in construction might just be following the lead of Long Island City, where keen-eyed developers flooded the market with new rentals before going all in on luxury condo towers."

Brooklyn saw a surge in rental apartment construction that, combined with Queens, created a larger rental market than Manhattan in 2025. StreetEasy identified seven Brooklyn neighborhoods among the top ten NYC locations for new rental construction. Central and South Brooklyn developments produced 9,875 units in January. Two decades of housing-focused rezonings enabled growth in areas like Gowanus and Crown Heights. Downtown Brooklyn and Gowanus led with 214 and 213 new rental buildings respectively, with median rents near $4,850. Investors are pulling back from older rent-stabilized multifamily buildings. Fort Greene, Crown Heights and Boerum Hill ranked among the top five for new construction.

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