Looking Successful Is About Feeling Successful

If Manhattan’s vacancy rate is really under one percent, then why are developers struggling to outdo each other in terms of amenities? Apparently it’s about “feeling successful”:

A golf simulator that lets residents imagine they’re playing the 18th hole at St. Andrews in Scotland.

A penthouse party room with sweeping city views where residents can entertain, say, 50 of their closest friends.

Swimming pools, yoga studios and massage rooms that would satisfy even the most driven New Yorkers.

And finally, the one thing that should make any apartment dweller’s heart skip a beat: a washer and dryer, even in a 450-square-foot studio.

These are the kinds of amenities that developers are using to redefine the term “luxury rental” in Manhattan, and, perhaps more to the point, to justify a whole new level of prices for people who want the feel of a high-end condominium but don’t want to buy.

With rental vacancies hovering at less than 1 percent, developers are confident that the rental market is strong enough to absorb thousands of new apartments, even if they come with rents that are two to three times current averages. That means studios that rent for as much as $3,500 a month, one-bedrooms for $6,000, and two-bedrooms for $11,000. These are, incidentally, the kind of prices that owners of high-end condos might get if they rented out their apartments, brokers say.

In recent years, developers have been focused more on condo development than on rental construction, but at least nine rental buildings have opened within the last year, and at least a dozen more are scheduled to open in the next two years. Most of these buildings are high-rises, which means that thousands of new apartments will become available in the next 18 months.

“Builders are realizing that they can build rentals with high amenities and real wow factor because people are willing to pay for it,” said Gary Malin, the chief operating officer of Citi Habitats. In many ways, the market for new rental buildings is merely following the lead set by the condominium market in the last five years, when developers raced to find the most talked-about new amenity.

The developers of these new rental buildings are also giving them a Club Med vibe. Some even have created the land-based equivalent of a cruise director — someone to organize Halloween parties, a softball team and the occasional ski trip or scuba diving lesson. All with particular renters in mind, of course.

“These are people who know how they want to feel when they walk into their lobby and their home,” said Cliff Finn, the managing director of new development marketing at Citi Habitats. “It’s about feeling successful.”

Oh yeah — I remember the golf simulator.