Rent out your NYC home instead of selling only if achievable rent covers maintenance, mortgage, leasing costs and a vacancy reserve with cash left over, and your building permits it: many co-ops allow subletting just 2 years out of every 5. Selling within about three years of moving out preserves the Section 121 exclusion of up to $250,000 in capital gains, or $500,000 for married couples filing jointly.
Manhattan's median asking rent hit $5,000 a month in February 2026, an all-time high according to Corcoran's rental market report, while Brooklyn's median asking rent reached $4,296 the same month. Rents like that lead relocating owners to ask whether to rent or sell. I have sold NYC real estate for 25+ years, and the rent figure alone rarely settles it: the carrying-cost math, the building's rules, and the tax clock do. This article assumes you already own the home; for the rent-or-buy question, see the rent vs. buy break-even guide.
What the Rent Actually Has to Cover
What matters is the rent left after carrying costs. The table below is an illustrative example, not a specific property.
| Monthly line item | Illustrative amount |
|---|---|
| Achievable rent | $3,800 |
| Common charges or maintenance | -$1,400 |
| Mortgage principal and interest | -$1,600 |
| Leasing and management costs | -$300 |
| Vacancy and repair reserve (5% of rent) | -$190 |
| Net monthly cash flow | $310 |
Illustrative example only, not a specific listing. Property taxes are assumed embedded in the common charges or maintenance line here; confirm your own building's actual figures before deciding.
That $300 leasing and management line covers tenant screening, lease preparation, and any leasing fee. Comparing rent to the mortgage payment alone overstates what renting nets. Run the table with the building's real charges and mortgage balance.
The top line, rent, is the number to source rather than estimate. The owner rental page carries median asking rents by neighborhood and bedroom count, with the listing count behind each figure and the year-over-year change, so you can test whether your building's line supports the rent your math needs.
Getting the Unit Back Later
New York's Good Cause Eviction law changed what it takes to end a covered tenancy, which affects owners who rent for a few years and then sell vacant or move back in.
Good Cause Eviction Changes the Exit Plan
Good Cause Eviction took effect April 20, 2024, and it limits the reasons a landlord can decline to renew a covered lease or recover the unit. Which units are covered, and how the lease timeline interacts with a future sale, are in the guide to selling an NYC apartment with a tenant in place.
Buyers who plan to move in cannot bid on a unit they cannot occupy, so if vacant possession matters to a future sale, set the lease term and renewals around that exit date from day one.
Weighing Rent vs. Sell for Your NYC Home?
I represent buyers and sellers across all five boroughs and Hudson Valley, and I run this exact comparison with owners before they sign a lease or list. Some of the deals I have closed are at miltoncoste.com/listings.
Schedule a Free ConsultationIf It Is a Co-op: The Sublet Clock Runs Out
Most NYC co-op proprietary leases do not make subletting a right. Common policies allow subletting for only 2 years out of every 5, require 1 to 2 years of owner occupancy before renting, or ban it outright once the owner moves out. Buildings that allow it often charge a sublet fee, and renewals typically need fresh board consent.
Read the proprietary lease and house rules first; in some buildings renting is unavailable, or the window is too short to matter.
Recently Listed in NYC
Live data · Updated every 15 min · Source: REBNY RLS
97-12 63rd Drive #7-A
Rego Park
61 Jane Street #15A
West Village
Listing information provided courtesy of the Real Estate Board of New York's Residential Listing Service (RLS). Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Sale listings verified. ©2026 REBNY. RLS data displayed by Keller Williams NYC.
If It Is a Condo: More Room to Rent, Still a Cost
Condominiums generally allow subletting without the occupancy waiting periods co-ops impose. Many condo boards still charge a sublet or leasing fee, set by the building's bylaws and house rules rather than by state law.
That fee is separate from Real Property Law 238-a, which governs the background and credit check fees charged to a prospective tenant. The condo fee is a building charge for leasing the unit; the 238-a fee is tied to the applicant. Budget for both.
The Tax Clock: Section 121 and Depreciation
Section 121 of the federal tax code lets a homeowner exclude up to $250,000 of capital gains on the sale of a primary residence, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly, but only if you owned and used the home as your primary residence for at least two of the five years before closing. The five-year window keeps running from the day the owner moves out, whether the unit is rented or empty.
For an owner who lived in the home two years before renting, that leaves roughly three years after moving out to sell and still meet the two-of-five-year test. Selling later puts the exclusion at risk. Confirm the timeline against IRS Publication 523 with a CPA before signing a lease that runs past that window. After-tax proceeds are in the capital gains guide for NYC sellers and the seller net proceeds breakdown; the seller net proceeds calculator gives cash at closing to compare with the rental's monthly cash flow.
If you do rent the unit out, the IRS generally requires you to depreciate the building portion of your basis over 27.5 years, which lowers taxable rental income each year. That depreciation reduces the cost basis and is recaptured at sale at a federal rate of up to 25%. A CPA should run recapture and the Section 121 exclusion against the actual numbers before the decision.
Rent It Out or Sell: Side by Side
Renting it out
- • Keeps the mortgage rate and the address if you might come back
- • Only pencils out if rent clears carrying costs, management, and a repair reserve
- • Co-op sublet caps and condo sublet fees change the math by building
- • Good Cause Eviction affects how and when you can end the tenancy later
- • Depreciation lowers rental income tax now but is recaptured at sale
Selling it
- • Converts equity into cash at closing with no ongoing landlord duties
- • The Section 121 exclusion is easiest to claim while you still qualify
- • Net proceeds depend on transfer tax, flip tax, and attorney fees
- • You give up any further appreciation in the building or the neighborhood
- • Timing against the market cycle becomes the main variable
The columns weigh differently by building and timeline: a condo that allows free subletting, a co-op that caps sublets at two years out of five, and an owner three years past moving out are three different calculations. Get a CPA and attorney involved before signing a lease or listing agreement.
An owner moving to a smaller NYC home faces a sequencing question instead; see the guide to moving to a smaller NYC home.
Ready to Run Your Own Numbers?
I represent sellers across all five boroughs and Hudson Valley, and I can walk your specific building's sublet rules and net-proceeds math against a current sale price before you commit either way.
Get a Free Home Value Estimate
