Daily Real Estate News  |  July 14, 2008  |   Manhattan, Boston Top List of Pricey Parking
Parking is hard to find and prices are only getting higher, according to the fifth annual parking rate survey released Friday by Colliers International real estate service company.

The company surveyed 64 U.S. cities in June and found that office occupancy rates remain high and that has pushed rates upward. Also one in five U.S garages polled by Colliers report having a waiting list with 4.3 months the average wait time for a space.

Three-quarters of the cities surveyed by Colliers described their parking supply as "fair" (meaning garages are 60-80 percent full Monday through Friday and on weekends during special events), while 23 percent indicated supply was "limited" (garages usually full Monday through Friday and on weekends during special events), 3 percent classified their parking supply as "abundant" (meaning garages are consistently less than 60 percent full).

The national averages for daily and monthly parking rates are $15.42 and $153.79, respectively. Here are the average downtown daily and monthly parking rates in the top 10 most-expensive markets:

• Midtown Manhattan – Daily: $40, Monthly: $585
• Boston – $33, $460
• Chicago – $30, $310
• San Francisco – $28, $350
• Los Angeles – $27.25, $196
• Seattle – $25, $260
• Philadelphia – $24, $300
• Washington, D.C. – $15, $240
• Houston –$14, $175
• St. Louis – $13.50, $105

Source: Colliers International (07/14/2008)