College graduates looking to land an affordable Manhattan rental apartment in their first foray into the real world, better act fast -- or they may be out of luck. As the summer rental season inches closer, the market is growing stronger by the month, according to two reports released today. Manhattan vacancy rates have declined every month since December's 12-month high of 1.34. In April the rate was 0.94, which compares favorably to the 1.23 percent vacancy rate achieved in April 2010. At the same time, rents have spiked across units of every size in Manhattan, led by studios and one-bedroom units -- 3 and 4 percent, respectively, month-over-month -- which together comprises three-fourths of the rental market.

One of the reports was a 2010 year-end review of the market, while the other was specific to April 2011. The year-end report showed growth of 2.8 percent and 1.7 percent in studios and one-bedroom apartments, respectively, but half-percent declines in two- and three-bedrooms compared with 2009.

However, in 2011 those larger units have closed the gap in a big way. Rents for two- and three-bedroom units soared. Two-bedrooms rose 9.3 percent while three-bedrooms climbed 9.1 percent in April 2011 compared to their 2010 averages, and now sit at $3,711 and $4,946, respectively.

And there's no neighborhood renters can turn to escape the rate hikes. With the exception of studios in Washington Heights, every single unit type in every single neighborhood increased in April 2011 compared with April 2010, according to the monthly report.

But Wall Street, typically a haven for young, just out-of-college professionals saw rates soar highest, as the monthly average one-bedroom apartment rent jumped to $3,356 in April 2011, up 35.1 percent from a year earlier. Meanwhile rents for two-bedroom homes skyrocketed to $4,473 a month, 27.4 percent more than in April 2010. And if the strategy for avoiding high rents was once to look north, it may not be anymore. Harlem rents are beginning to close the gap, too, especially for larger units. Whereas, monthly rents stood at $1,768 for two-bedroom homes in April 2010, those numbers hiked 31.4 percent over the course of the year to $2,324.