Is it News That Rent in Brooklyn is High? Apparently so.

Having moved to Brooklyn from (insert name of any other place outside of the five boroughs here) six years ago, I have never thought of rents here as anything but absurdly high. So imagine my amusement upon hearing that Manhattanites actually considerer Brooklyn a magical land of low rents and spacious apartments. Or at least, lower rents and spacious-er apartments. It's all a matter of perspective, right? Well, apparently not.

According to a recent rental market report, rents in Brooklyn are high (everyone knew that) but they are also getting higher. Case in point: over the last 12 months the average rent of a two bedroom apartment has risen by nearly 10%. Across the borough the costs of studios are also on the rise -- and our nabe is particularly bad. Since September of last year the average cost of studio in Park Slope jumped from $1200 to nearly $1700. One of our writers failed to renew her Slope lease on a studio, and found it on Craigslist being offered for $100 more than when she signed a year earlier. Even Jay-Z thinks Brooklyn is too expensive.

This whole thing is especially interesting given the overall condition of the economy, right? I mean, who's driving these rents up? I have my suspicions ...share studios? maybe the researchers behind the report should have included some anecdotal evidence in the form of a graph of the rise in roommate-to-bedroom ratio.

Have you guys noticed an increase in rent over the past year?