This week readers visited Brick Underground for an update on New York City's rental market. Manhattan's median rent jumped 18 percent last month compared to last year—and the high end of the market is seeing much more activity than the lower end as returning New Yorkers seek larger and therefore pricier apartments to work from home.

Also of interest: An architect lost the Covid discount on his Upper East Side rental when it was time to renew his lease—that was the incentive he needed to become an owner: He bought a condo on the Upper West Side. Read his take on how the two neighborhoods compare.

Here are this week's top five posts:

1) Tale of two Manhattan markets: Rents for doorman apartments surge 18 percent, non-doorman units see small rise

2) From the UES to the UWS: Saying no to a rent hike and buying a condo instead

3) Amid rising prices and inflation fears, NYC buyers look for apartments with low carrying costs

4) How to get around the supply chain crisis when you're upgrading your NYC apartment or brownstone

5) Here are the NYC apartments for sale with the deepest price chops in October