According to the latest Elliman report, compared to last month in June, prices seem to be decreasing. Don’t get too excited just yet though, because although there was a slight decrease between these past two months, July’s overall rents are the highest they have been in the past six consecutive Julys.

The studio apartment—one room, serving as the living room, bedroom and kitchen. To some, the idea of living in a small studio apartment can be overwhelming. The studio apartment is not for everyone, but for those who take the plunge, there are some things to know about what it takes to live the studio life successfully.

In a city that seems to be teeming with singles, there is some contradiction in the fact that it is often hard to find accommodation in New York City that’s specifically catered to unmarried folk, or even couples. These New Yorkers aren’t looking for a towering penthouse or a sprawling three-bedroom residence—they’re just looking for a compact, cozy space in the city that they can call home. However, such apartments are often hard to find, which is why 101 West 15th Street’s arrival in the rental market is probably going to be seen as a godsend by many of the city’s singles and couples.

There’s been a lot of hype and hoopla over New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s plan to introduce 275-square foot micro apartments in the city as a means to satisfy New Yorkers’ apparent demand for small apartments. Bloomberg’s plans to shrink rental living space has got both positive and negative reactions, although the majority of the feedback seems to have been mostly of the latter category. But it now seems that Bloomberg was on the right path after all—the size of new rentals in the city has been shrinking over the past few years.

Do you hear that? It’s the sound of taxicabs buzzing by and New York residents stomping their way to work; the sound of busy restaurants serving customers at their outdoor tables; the sound of dogs roughhousing in the dog runs at Central Park. Yes, Manhattan is alive and well, so it's no surprise that millions are trying to make Manhattan their permanent home, although high rents are making it hard for many. This financial duress is causing some to look across the river and to the north to find affordable rental apartments. But savvy renters shouldn't lose hope, because those that have been persistent enough to keep looking for high-quality rental apartments in Manhattan are still finding deals.

After an exciting August – both in terms of the weather and the real estate market – expectations ran high for September. Not only did August have remarkable increases in rental prices all over Manhattan, but it also had a hurricane and an earthquake. That’s a tough act to follow, and it didn’t help that September had lots of rain and humidity. Nonetheless, September was a good month for Manhattan real estate overall, although not nearly as torrid as August. The gains made in September fell very much in line with luxury rental market trends of the past 3 years. Recent months showed divergent trends between studios and everything else, and that held true for September: while rental prices rose for 1- and 2-bedrooms, studio prices went down. Right now, Manhattan studios are undoubtedly the best bargains in the city. The luxury market still looks good though; overall rents increased by 0.8% in September even with this decline.

<p> At a certain level, the question of which Manhattan neighborhood is best for singles is kind of a silly one. Silly because, New York being New York, just about every Manhattan neighborhood is a pretty good Manhattan neighborhood in which to be single. But, of course, there are degrees of goodness -- which means that singles hunting for their own <a href="http://luxuryrentalsmanhattan.com/studio-apartments">NYC studios</a> or <a href="http://luxuryrentalsmanhattan.com/1br-apartments">one-bedroom apartments</a> might do well to check out a new study from the New York Daily News that uses a simple formula to ascertain which Manhattan neighborhoods are best for solo NYC apartment-hunters. Besides, you know, all of them.</p> <p>