Shine a light on NYC Real Estate Pitfalls
September 17, 2012 8:11 AM Subscribe
Tell me about your NYC apt hunting horror stories...
So I've been combing through AskMeFi for helpful tips on finding apts in Manhattan, and there's a plethora of helpful information and links (esp if you're comfortable paying a brokerage fee). I'm moving up to the city from DC and I want to take a different angle on what potential pitfalls there are in this daunting environment.
DC is already a healthy and agressive RE market, but it pales in comparison in terms of competitiveness, scale and general disorderliness. If you have any anecdotes about common scams (e.g. Craigslist hustlers, broker swindlers, slumlords, schemey roomates) or red flags to avoid, I'd love to hear em so I (and those who read) can benefit from said experiences.
In case it helps, I'm looking in LES/EV/FiDi/Midtown East and potentially Williamsburg as landing spots. Considering both studios and apt splits.
Thanks!
So I've been combing through AskMeFi for helpful tips on finding apts in Manhattan, and there's a plethora of helpful information and links (esp if you're comfortable paying a brokerage fee). I'm moving up to the city from DC and I want to take a different angle on what potential pitfalls there are in this daunting environment.
DC is already a healthy and agressive RE market, but it pales in comparison in terms of competitiveness, scale and general disorderliness. If you have any anecdotes about common scams (e.g. Craigslist hustlers, broker swindlers, slumlords, schemey roomates) or red flags to avoid, I'd love to hear em so I (and those who read) can benefit from said experiences.
In case it helps, I'm looking in LES/EV/FiDi/Midtown East and potentially Williamsburg as landing spots. Considering both studios and apt splits.
Thanks!
Really make sure that whatever the landlord is telling you about repairs is true.
Last year my boyfriend moved into an apartment with no running water, with the promise that it would be working within the week. The landlord said he was just waiting for the water to be turned on and that he had contacted the company. A month later and still no water, boyfriend and roommates find out that the pipes were all destroyed in a fire ten years ago, the building has no certificate of occupancy, and that a former owner is disputing ownership of the building. They got out of there real quick, but only after having spent the month actually peeing in buckets. True story.
If you move in somewhere and the repairs are taking longer than promised, scrutinize this as highly as you can and make back-up plans, just in case.
posted by dysh at 8:23 AM on September 17, 2012 [4 favorites]
Last year my boyfriend moved into an apartment with no running water, with the promise that it would be working within the week. The landlord said he was just waiting for the water to be turned on and that he had contacted the company. A month later and still no water, boyfriend and roommates find out that the pipes were all destroyed in a fire ten years ago, the building has no certificate of occupancy, and that a former owner is disputing ownership of the building. They got out of there real quick, but only after having spent the month actually peeing in buckets. True story.
If you move in somewhere and the repairs are taking longer than promised, scrutinize this as highly as you can and make back-up plans, just in case.
posted by dysh at 8:23 AM on September 17, 2012 [4 favorites]
A particularly bad story I've heard recently: a broker didn't want the prospective tenant to fill out an application, they just wanted a month's rent as a deposit. Immediately, in cash. Because the owner was out of the country on vacation and wouldn't be returning for several weeks.
He got combative when the prospective tenants said it sounded sketchy and they wanted to walk away.
A couple of years ago I signed a lease for an apartment even though the management company never picked up the phone when I tried to call them to set up an appointment to view an apartment. (I was having terrible luck finding anything in my price range, since my price range was $900, and I ended up walking over to the apartment complex since I couldn't reach them on the phone.) I'm not sure if that counts as a red flag, but that was a terrible, terrible apartment, and the management company kept on being almost impossible to contact.
posted by Jeanne at 8:23 AM on September 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
He got combative when the prospective tenants said it sounded sketchy and they wanted to walk away.
A couple of years ago I signed a lease for an apartment even though the management company never picked up the phone when I tried to call them to set up an appointment to view an apartment. (I was having terrible luck finding anything in my price range, since my price range was $900, and I ended up walking over to the apartment complex since I couldn't reach them on the phone.) I'm not sure if that counts as a red flag, but that was a terrible, terrible apartment, and the management company kept on being almost impossible to contact.
posted by Jeanne at 8:23 AM on September 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
Oh, yes! Don't believe anything anyone tells you about repairs that are going to be made in the future. "That will be fixed before you move in" is never, never true.
At the Department of Housing web site you can see what violations are on record for a building and you can see if there are consistent problems with no heat, no hot water, pests, etc.
posted by Jeanne at 8:26 AM on September 17, 2012 [3 favorites]
At the Department of Housing web site you can see what violations are on record for a building and you can see if there are consistent problems with no heat, no hot water, pests, etc.
posted by Jeanne at 8:26 AM on September 17, 2012 [3 favorites]
I've found out if you use a broker who is not the listing agent you will have to pay a 15% fee instead of the usual 1 month's rent. It works out to basically the listing agent and your broker each getting the full fee. It is possible to negotiate with your broker but you can't bring it down by much.
I'm told your best approach to getting around a broker's fee is to ask friends if they know of any apartments that are going to become available shortly.
Memail me if you'd consider a nice studio in the UWS (Columbus and 69th) for $2K. (Not affiliated, my bf is moving out of it.)
posted by Dragonness at 8:26 AM on September 17, 2012
I'm told your best approach to getting around a broker's fee is to ask friends if they know of any apartments that are going to become available shortly.
Memail me if you'd consider a nice studio in the UWS (Columbus and 69th) for $2K. (Not affiliated, my bf is moving out of it.)
posted by Dragonness at 8:26 AM on September 17, 2012
By 15%, I mean 15% of your annual rent.
posted by Dragonness at 8:31 AM on September 17, 2012
posted by Dragonness at 8:31 AM on September 17, 2012
I've been relatively lucky. But one thing that happened to me was broker/management company related. I guess it would was sort of a bait and switch thing.
I was living in a Washington Heights building with a roommate, when a 1 bedroom came open just down the hall. I called the management agency to find out what the rent would be. I was called back by a guy who said he was waiting to find out from the landlord about the unit I was interested in, but he had some other things in my price range, did I want to see them? So I went to look at these other apartments which were a) in not so great locations b) more than I wanted to spend c) surprise- had a broker's fee. I wasn't interested.
Two weeks later I called again about the apartment down the hall (the super said it was still available and hadn't been shown). Turns out the landlord had been in the process of moving to a new management company. The old one never even told him that I had called about that apartment. That guy was just hoping he could get a fee out of me on a different apartment. The landlord gave me a price, which was more than I could afford. I told him what I wanted to pay ($200 less), and that I would sign a lease that week and pay the full month of March even though it was already mid month. Also, I was a good tenant that he already knew had an on-time payment track record. He went for it. I lived in that place 6 years. He was sort of benignly neglectful, and the new management agency was sort of scattered. My rent only went up a total of $175 the entire time I lived there.
posted by kimdog at 8:32 AM on September 17, 2012
I was living in a Washington Heights building with a roommate, when a 1 bedroom came open just down the hall. I called the management agency to find out what the rent would be. I was called back by a guy who said he was waiting to find out from the landlord about the unit I was interested in, but he had some other things in my price range, did I want to see them? So I went to look at these other apartments which were a) in not so great locations b) more than I wanted to spend c) surprise- had a broker's fee. I wasn't interested.
Two weeks later I called again about the apartment down the hall (the super said it was still available and hadn't been shown). Turns out the landlord had been in the process of moving to a new management company. The old one never even told him that I had called about that apartment. That guy was just hoping he could get a fee out of me on a different apartment. The landlord gave me a price, which was more than I could afford. I told him what I wanted to pay ($200 less), and that I would sign a lease that week and pay the full month of March even though it was already mid month. Also, I was a good tenant that he already knew had an on-time payment track record. He went for it. I lived in that place 6 years. He was sort of benignly neglectful, and the new management agency was sort of scattered. My rent only went up a total of $175 the entire time I lived there.
posted by kimdog at 8:32 AM on September 17, 2012
Response by poster: Great stuff everyone, keep it coming.
I'm particularly wary about people on craigslist asking for first/last month + the deposit (We're talking in excess of 5k usually). While I have no qualms if that's being handled properly, what would hold someone back from absconding away with that money? Is that money legally segregated and thus immune from things like bait-and-switch bankruptcy?
posted by Hurst at 8:39 AM on September 17, 2012
I'm particularly wary about people on craigslist asking for first/last month + the deposit (We're talking in excess of 5k usually). While I have no qualms if that's being handled properly, what would hold someone back from absconding away with that money? Is that money legally segregated and thus immune from things like bait-and-switch bankruptcy?
posted by Hurst at 8:39 AM on September 17, 2012
Paying first+last+deposit is not uncommon and, as long as everything is handled in an above-board way, would not set off my alarms.
Google your building. If I had done that, I wouldn't have moved into a slum operated by people who euthanize their tenants' pets.
posted by prefpara at 8:51 AM on September 17, 2012 [3 favorites]
Google your building. If I had done that, I wouldn't have moved into a slum operated by people who euthanize their tenants' pets.
posted by prefpara at 8:51 AM on September 17, 2012 [3 favorites]
prefpara: "Paying first+last+deposit is not uncommon and, as long as everything is handled in an above-board way, would not set off my alarms."
Yeah, they are supposed to keep the deposit in a segregated account and pay you interest on it, actually. Definitely not out of the ordinary. But if it's just some dude instead of an actual management company I would definitely check them out pretty carefully before handing over any money...
posted by Grither at 8:54 AM on September 17, 2012
Yeah, they are supposed to keep the deposit in a segregated account and pay you interest on it, actually. Definitely not out of the ordinary. But if it's just some dude instead of an actual management company I would definitely check them out pretty carefully before handing over any money...
posted by Grither at 8:54 AM on September 17, 2012
Since I have lived in the city, I have only lived in condos or co-ops that I rent from their owners. (So, I live in buildings whose residents primarily own their apartments rather than rent them, and the people I rent from usually have only one or two rental properties.) In general, this has been great: the buildings I live in are nicer than rental buildings, my neighbors are invested in making the building a nice place to live, and there's much more stability in my surroundings (people move in and out far less frequently than in rental buildings).
Out of my three landladies, only one has been a nightmare. She had never rented before, and had ridiculous expectations of what tenants would be like. After her, it will definitely be a standard part of my search to find out whether a landlord has had tenants before or is new to being a landlord. I don't ever want to be the first tenant again.
posted by ocherdraco at 9:27 AM on September 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
Out of my three landladies, only one has been a nightmare. She had never rented before, and had ridiculous expectations of what tenants would be like. After her, it will definitely be a standard part of my search to find out whether a landlord has had tenants before or is new to being a landlord. I don't ever want to be the first tenant again.
posted by ocherdraco at 9:27 AM on September 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
Once you find a place you like, go back to the neighborhood late at night, and on a weekend. All of the neighborhoods you mention change dramatically from block to block during those times.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:32 AM on September 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:32 AM on September 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
Remember vaguely:
There was a German girl, crashing at a place in NYC. There were two rooms in the Apartment and her host was gone for a while. She offered the place on Craigslist, below market price and had at lot of people showing up. First Month, Last month, one month deposit to move in. I think she rented the place out to 30 people or something.
Well, on the 1st next month there were lots of people with moving boxes in front of her apartment. Must have been funny to watch.
She was gone of cause.
posted by yoyo_nyc at 11:32 AM on September 17, 2012
There was a German girl, crashing at a place in NYC. There were two rooms in the Apartment and her host was gone for a while. She offered the place on Craigslist, below market price and had at lot of people showing up. First Month, Last month, one month deposit to move in. I think she rented the place out to 30 people or something.
Well, on the 1st next month there were lots of people with moving boxes in front of her apartment. Must have been funny to watch.
She was gone of cause.
posted by yoyo_nyc at 11:32 AM on September 17, 2012
Wait what prefpara?! Can you elaborate? That sounds like a story that belongs in this thread!
posted by crabintheocean at 12:33 PM on September 17, 2012
posted by crabintheocean at 12:33 PM on September 17, 2012
landlords expect you to earn, on an annual basis, 40x the monthly rent
Good GOD. Doesn't NY, or NYC for that matter, have income discrimination protection?
posted by Slackermagee at 1:19 PM on September 17, 2012
Good GOD. Doesn't NY, or NYC for that matter, have income discrimination protection?
posted by Slackermagee at 1:19 PM on September 17, 2012
Just a tip that it seems that most NY supers just slap up paint (messily-even our light switches are painted) and consider the apartment move in ready.
Our apartment was pretty dirty (except for white walls). If your building isn't a luxury building then you should take into consideration that you will be spending time scrubbing the bathtub, soaking the toilet, and clearing crumbs out of cupboards during moving day.
If you notice the a toilet or sink is really really dirty when you check out the apartment-you should specifically ask for it to be replaced or cleaned. Or else-you will get it "as is"
posted by duddes02 at 2:12 PM on September 17, 2012
Our apartment was pretty dirty (except for white walls). If your building isn't a luxury building then you should take into consideration that you will be spending time scrubbing the bathtub, soaking the toilet, and clearing crumbs out of cupboards during moving day.
If you notice the a toilet or sink is really really dirty when you check out the apartment-you should specifically ask for it to be replaced or cleaned. Or else-you will get it "as is"
posted by duddes02 at 2:12 PM on September 17, 2012
Another tip: Don't pay the super in cash for the application fee.
That should have been a red flag for us.....
posted by duddes02 at 2:16 PM on September 17, 2012
That should have been a red flag for us.....
posted by duddes02 at 2:16 PM on September 17, 2012
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Briefly stated: landlords expect you to earn, on an annual basis, 40x the monthly rent, or else have a guarantor who lives in the tri-state area (e.g., NYS, CT, NJ) who earns ~100x the monthly rent.
Go into each apartment viewing assuming that it is the apartment you want. Be prepared by bringing: (1) a copy of a recent bank statement, (2) letter of employment verifying your salary, (3) a checkbook to cover credit check fees, (4) a copy of last year's tax return, or at least its front page, and (5) letters of reference from previous landlords, business colleagues, etc.
posted by dfriedman at 8:17 AM on September 17, 2012 [2 favorites]