Occupancy Takes a Dive in New York’s Upper-Tier Apartments

New York’s luxury apartments were in great shape at the beginning of 2020, but occupancy has come down notably during the COVID-19 pandemic. Between March and August, New York’s top-tier product recorded a 210-basis point decline in occupancy, one of the nation’s worst performances for that product niche. The most trying months for the Big Apple’s Class A product line were June and July, when occupancy dropped a total of 160 basis points. By comparison, Class A apartments in the U.S. hit a low point in June and have bounced back slightly in July and August. In all, Class A units across the U.S. are now an average of 60 bps below their March reading. Despite the continued decline among New York’s upper-tier product, however, that niche was still 95.5% occupied as of August, one of the tightest in the U.S. and well above the national Class A norm of 94.6%.