QUEENS — As rents keep rising in Brooklyn and Manhattan, Jamaica is the top neighborhood to keep an eye on next year, according to real estate experts at StreetEasy.
In recent years, Jamaica, which previously lagged behind much of the city in terms of development, has undergone a fast-paced transformation with a number of new apartment buildings and hotels coming to the area.
The area, which also made it on StreetEasy's list of hottest neighborhoods in the city last year, is only minutes from JFK and provides express trains to Manhattan.
“The rise of Jamaica is due to a number of favorable factors, including a healthy growth in population since 2011, strong growth in interest among buyers and renters, comparatively low prices and convenient access to the New York City subway and Long Island Railroad systems,” according to Alan Lightfeldt, a senior data analyst at StreetEasy.
Neighborhoods that have been named “hot” experienced the largest increase in asking rents, sale prices and population, according to StreetEasy.
The median asking rent in Jamaica this year was $1,750, an increase of 4.5 percent compared to last year, according to StreetEasy.
The median sale price in the neighborhood rose by 39.3 percent, to $299,500 this year.
Jamaica's population has also grew by 8.5 percent in the past 3 years, StreetEasy said.
“StreetEasy has found what so many of us have known, that Jamaica offers a unique combination of transportation assets, cultural attractions and other aspects that make it attractive to developers, as well as potential residents and businesses," said Hope Knight, president of the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation, a local nonprofit group that works to bring new investments to the neighborhood.
But Knight also underlined the need to keep Jamaica affordable.
"Our task is to make sure that development happens in a balanced way, that supports the need for affordable housing for current and new residents alike,” she said.
Four other Queens neighborhoods — Jamaica Estates, Kew Gardens Hills, Woodside and Elmhurst — also made it to the list of the ten neighborhoods predicted to be the most in demand among homeseekers and renters next year.
“Demand and value continue to rise in Queens,” said Queens Borough President Melinda Katz in a statement. “The strong growth is a testament to the borough's appeal, especially for families.”
Other neighborhoods included Coney Island and Midwood in Brooklyn as well as Pelham Parkway and Bedford Park in the Bronx.
Earlier this year, Katz and Mayor de Blasio’s administration launched the “Jamaica Now Action Plan,” a strategy seeking to revitalize Jamaica by developing vacant spaces and replacing them with new housing and retail stores.
Overall, renters in Queens will have to pay a median rent of $2,527 in 2016, compared to $2,700 in Brooklyn and $3,192 in Manhattan, according to StreetEasy.
