Uptown Manhattan Neighborhoods

Street view of brownstone buildings in Harlem, New York City.

Largely uncredited as an important part of the borough, Uptown Manhattan offers its own specific brand of real estate featuring appealing architecture and great proximity to Central Park. The subdivision includes some of the borough’s most coveted areas for boutique office and residential space, including Washington Heights, Harlem, the Upper West Side and the Upper East Side.

In recent years, much effort and funding have charged the economic growth and revitalization for business in Upper Manhattan. These neighborhoods are marked with distinction and, respectively, dotted with landmarks and prestigious institutions of art, culture and academics. The Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Apollo Theatre, and Columbia University only begin to describe the institutions available to the area.

Who is renting office space in Uptown Manhattan?

Barring some Upper West Side and Upper East Side office spots, the bulk of inventory largely consists of smaller, boutique-style office space, best suited for small businesses and private offices. The talent pool available is extremely well-educated, fueled by the presence of Columbia University in the area.

Notable tenants occupying office space in Uptown Manhattan include ABC, Time Warner, BMI, Aetna, Harlem Properties, Silicon Alley media, National Geographic, and French Bull, among many others. The market is appealing to companies working in various different industries, from white-collar professionals in the healthcare and law sectors, to firms operating in the architecture, tech and communications fields. The Upper East Side also houses various diplomatic missions.

How much does it cost to lease an office in Uptown Manhattan?

Office rents in Uptown Manhattan aren’t cheap, but they are significantly more affordable than those found in Midtown Manhattan. There is plenty of high-quality, creative office space available on the market, with asking prices hovering below $60 per square foot on the Upper West Side and above $70 per square foot on the Upper East Side, per CBRE data. By comparison, average asking rents for Midtown Manhattan office space reached a new record-high of $87 per square foot in the first months of 2019.

Transportation and commuting

There are plenty of public transportation options to get around Uptown Manhattan. Transport in the area is provided by the New York City Subway, the MTA Regional Bus, and the Metro North Railroad. A plethora of different lines are accessible to those who live/work/play in this section of Manhattan, including the IRT Broadway-Seventh Avenue Line, the IND Eighth Avenue Line, the IRT Lexington Avenue Live, and the two-track Second Avenue subway line. Dozens of local and crosstown bus routes are also available.