Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with nyc and realestate

Lease AFTER moving in?

2bucksplus — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 09:58:23 -0800

New York City apartment question: Is it normal for my broker to tell me I will receive hard copies of my lease a "couple of weeks" after moving in? I found an apartment with a November 1st move in date in New York City. Everything was going well and I received two copies of the lease to review and sign. Initially I was told one copy of the lease would be returned to me within about 48 hours, signed by the management company. Now I am being told I should move in on the 1st and wait for a copy to be mailed to me within a couple of weeks.

Is this normal? It makes me feel very uncomfortable. Both the broker company and the landlord are large well known companies in the NYC area. Is there any law I can quote on this? What else should I do, besides getting everything in writing?

Good resources for finding livable rent-stabilized apartments in Manhattan?

jdruk — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:42:14 -0800

Good resources for finding livable rent-stabilized apartments in Manhattan? My husband and I are looking for the impossible - a livable, 700+ sqf, 1+ bedroom apartment in Manhattan that's not in Harlem, Washington Heights or the Upper East Side.

I've been living in the city for 15+ years, and I feel like I've exhausted the only resources that I know of - Craigslist, NYBits, friends and relatives... and I have nothing to show for it.

I know, it's ludicrous to even hope for such a thing. Nonetheless, does anyone have any suggestions of other things to try? I've heard people read the obits, but I'm afraid that as soon as a stabilized apartment opens up, it automatically goes to a family member of the managing company's boss or becomes destabilized.

So... any ideas? Success stories to share?

A deposit on an apartment we didn't move into has gone missing. Am I screwed?

GilloD — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:09:07 -0800

NYC real estate Q: We put a deposit on an apartment that became uninhabitable before we signed any forms or agreements. We decided to see if it was fixable, but in the meantime we found a new place to live. Now the owner doesn't want to give our deposit back. Are we screwed? A full, gripping narrative inside. So my wife and I have been apartment hunting for about two weeks. Last Wednesday, the 9th, we found a beautiful apartment for a good price. They sold it as a new construction, no problems except for a spot of water damage on the one ceiling. I take a picture, we agree it'll be in the lease. We toured the place, made sure everything worked and then put down a deposit (500$) on the space around 3 that afternoon. We returned around 6 to do a final tour and fill out some paperwork. While we were there, it began to rain. And then the bed rooms and downstairs flooded. I don't mean a trickle, we're talking full on flood, pouring from the recessed lighting, from the walls, inside the closets. The place was no longer fit for living in, the downstairs bedroom areas were ruined.

We called the broker who said he'd call the owner, find out how severe the problem was and get back to us Thursday morning. In the meantime I very stupidly let him hold on to the deposit. Thursday morning comes and goes and no word from Broker. I call him in the afternoon, around 12, and he says he has nothing to tell me yet, but keep looking at apartments. My deposit, he says, is safe with him. I inquire about getting it back, he says it won't a problem, he won't pass it to the owner.

Thursday passes, Friday passes and Friday evening he calls to say, "No word yet, but hold in there, I'll call you on Sunday, give you an update and you can decide whether or not to proceed". Sunday comes and goes, no call, but it was my sister's birthday so I wasn't 100% on point.

I call him Monday morning and leave a voicemail. Monday afternoon we find a beautiful apartment with a wonderful owner in a bigger space for less money. Great! I call Broker and he doesn't answer, so I leave a voicemail. I call again in the evening, but don't leave a voicemail.

Tuesday, I call Broker and he acts like his voicemail is broken and he never got my message. In the meantime he says he gave the Owner the deposit. He hems and haws a bit, goes ice cold on me and says he'll call back, that he has to talk to his boss. That evening his boss calls my wife, leaves a voicemail, but doesn't answer our return call. I call Broker, leave a voicemail.

Today I call Broker in the early afternoon he says that the Owner sent in a crew, he's not sure if he can get the deposit back. I tell him I never consented to giving the deposit over and reminded him that he said he'd check in on Sunday. He says he'll have to call his boss and see what can be done.

He calls this afternoon and wants me to talk to his boss. Before I do this, I want to see where we are legally speaking. Yes, we handed the deposit to him, but with the assurance that the deposit would not go to the owner without our consent. We DID NOT sign ANYTHING. No application, no lease, no contract, no agreement. Dumbdumbdumb, I know. But what's the status of a deposit in this case?

Almost certainly a crew we have to be sent in to clean up regardless. The space would surely have been illegal to rent in the shape it was in. Are they just looking to make this hard or am I well and truly screwed? Help rescue my money!

Help me find a Manhattan apartment for 3-6 months

kanuck — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 13:43:43 -0800

Looking for resources / advice on finding a Manhattan apartment for 3-6 months (Feb-July 2008). Furnished would be preferable, but I can deal with buying some throwaway furniture.

I'm open on price range, though if it gets up to "corporate temp housing" level expensive, that isn't too useful.

I live in Seattle and am expecting to take a trip in order to handle closing arrangements. I've considered just coming to NYC for a week (is that enough?) to do everything in person (looking at places, haggling, signing papers etc) -- thoughts on that approach? (in particular, how far in advance would be best to maximize my odds?).

Other thoughts:

1) Craigslist: most of the ads seem to be for comparatively short term sublets (days or weeks, rather than months). I'll probably post a "housing wanted" ad there at some point, but am really looking for other options.

2) Apartment brokers: given my requirements, will they useful / required?

3) Universities/colleges: do any in Manhattan make student housing available to non-students?

RSS feeds for a housing search?

malphigian — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:35:29 -0800

Good site(s) which provide configurable RSS feeds for real estate listings? (greater NYC area, and/or nationally in the U.S.) I'm currently interested in keeping an eye on a few different areas around NY and NJ to see what's out there and what prices are like. It seems to me that somewhere out there there would be a site that would let me put in some zip codes/cities, some other criteria about what I'm looking for, and would give me a custom RSS based on those criteria.

But I've had no luck finding such a site so far. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Step-by-step apartment hunting in NYC

liberalintellect — Wed, 02 May 2007 16:08:05 -0800

TOTALLY clueless here. Can someone give me step-by-step directions for getting a good deal on an apartment in New York City (preferably with a timetable of when each step should be accomplished relative to "move in day")? I'll try and keep this short. Moving to NYC late summer/fall, need to get an apartment. Would prefer instructions that apply to all boroughs, though I'll likely be working in either Brooklyn or the Bronx. I'll give up living in Manhattan if it means I get a room bigger than a closet for the same price or less.

I know what I'm asking for is difficult, but I really need help. Thanks.

NYC broker recommendations

twoporedomain — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 07:29:26 -0800

NYC broker recommendations and resources The boyfriend and I are hoping to move within Manhattan soon, and are in the uniquely advantageous position of having a flexible end-date to our current lease, having the budget to afford an apartment in our ideal neighborhoods, and having most of the moving and brokerage costs reimbursed by his company. This last point, combined with our laziness, means that we want to go through a broker. I’ve read previous threads about renting in New York (1, 2, 3, 4), and understand that there is a strong anti-brokerage firm sentiment here. But given that we’ve already decided to use one, can you help us out with the following:

1. Recommendations for (or against) a particular firm or agent? We are especially interested in brokers that cover Chelsea and the West Village areas. Personal recommendations or anecdotes are appreciated, as well as links to helpful forums.

2. I’ve read that late summer/early fall is the worst time to look for apartments. How true is this? And does going through a broker mitigate this at all?

3. How long can we expect this process to take, given that hopefully most of the legwork will be done by someone else?

Thanks all!

How to avoid paying an insane broker's fee when renting a Manhattan apartment?

Afroblanco — Sat, 08 Jul 2006 13:41:04 -0800

How to avoid paying an insane broker's fee when renting a Manhattan apartment? My roommate and I are looking to move into a 2-bedroom apartment on Sept. 1.

All of the brokers that I found on Craigslist say the same thing - "You're moving at the worst time of the year, and our fee is 15% of annual rent."

There don't seem to be too many non-broker options.

What are some strategies for getting around this? As far as I see it, Craigslist has already failed us.

Landlord selling my building: Am I screwed?

logovisual — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 17:26:53 -0800

NYC: Our landlord is selling our building. We have a lease. What's going to happen to us? I just learned on Saturday that our landlord is selling the brownstone we rent the top floor of in Brooklyn. Somebody is already coming by to see the place tomorrow. We have a standard, legal lease; what are a new owner's responsibilities re: this lease, our rent, etc.? Does he/she have to honor them, or are we up shit creek? This is a surprisingly difficult topic to Google... My understanding was that they do have to honor the lease, but informally speaking, if that displeases them, they can make my life very difficult. Am I wrong in this, and they don't have to honor it at all?

Why does putting up a new building raise real estate prices in the surrounding buildings instead of lowering them?

Caviar — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 21:44:45 -0800

Why does putting up a new building raise real estate prices in the surrounding buildings instead of lowering them? (Specifically, with respect to NYC, but explanations based on other areas will do in a pinch.)

It seems that every time a new residential building goes up, rather than lower prices by feeding the demand with some extra supply, all of the prices in the surrounding area go up because this is evidence that the neighborhood is now "hot" (or "hotter"). New construction buildings in the area are pitched as positive selling points for existing apartments.

Prices are apparently very closely tied to what the purchasers think they'll be able to resell for, rather than what the apartments are "worth", but I don't really understand how this phenomenon works in terms of motivation and demand. Expected resale value is presumably an element of worth, but I'm interested in correlations beyond that observation, given that it's not actually possible to predict how the market is going to go when a person will decide to sell.

Is this characteristic of a bubble? Is there an area of economics that deals with this?

Do market principles work differently if a large portion of the available goods are being frequently resold, rather than consumed?

Are there other markets which follow this same pattern?

Manhattan realtor-rating website?

mert — Sun, 02 Jan 2005 17:43:15 -0800

Does anyone know of a website that rates realtors in Manhattan?

What's the best way to find an apartment in NYC?

CunningLinguist — Fri, 10 Dec 2004 13:34:27 -0800

NYCaptFilter: I'm moving to NYC (yay!) and sorry, but I'm going to drive you all nuts with questions for the next few weeks. #1: Best way to find an apartment? I know the city, but would like tips on finding a good place. Broker? Classified listings? Pitfalls to avoid? How do I find something rent stabilized? Any opinion about rentdirect.com? I promise to host a meetup when I get settled.

Shiny, tiny new apartment in Manhattan or affordable charm in Brooklyn?

hsoltz — Wed, 19 May 2004 09:25:02 -0800

Another NYC Real Estate Question: the SO and I, who have always lived in charming smallish walk-ups with leaky tubs/peeling paint in Queens-like proximity to 'the big city,' have been seduced by the siren song of new construction downtown. With their pre-opening rent breaks, brand-new appliances, and convenience to both work and play, these "luxury buildings" appear to offer a whole new standard of living at an attractive price. However, ... [mi] ...we're slightly paralyzed by the thought that the same rent, or less, could land us a spacious yet locationally-challenged loft in Brooklyn. (Everything we're seen is far from a subway.) So which sounds better to you: "location, location, location," or the ability to inhabit opposite ends of an apartment without being able to hear each other?