Luxury Renters in New York Finally Have Leverage to Negotiate
- `We had to join the concession party,' COO Santee says on call
- Company's previous revenue forecast now deemed unattainable
A cool-down in Manhattan’s apartment-rental market is hitting the bottom line of Equity Residential as the landlord is forced to offer concessions to tenants who suddenly have a lot of competition to choose from.
“New York City just turned very quickly and more deeply than we expected,” Chief Operating Officer David Santee said on a conference call Wednesday to discuss first-quarter earnings. With the city accounting for about 20 percent of the firm’s revenue, “if you can’t achieve 3 or 4 percent rate growth there, then it’s going to impact your full-year growth.”