The two most important possessions to have in the Big Apple are parking spaces and New York apts. The economy isn’t half as bad as other cities so finding and keeping a job isn’t that hard. So money, cars and the other things that a person needs are not so hard to come by.
But getting a good apartment is a whole new cup of coffee (regular). The ones who already have an apartment aren’t going to give it up – at least not willingly. New inventory comes into the market at a fast clip, but most are either for sale only or the rental is too high for someone who’s not a Wall St. Banker.
Of the existing lot, renters can get a place in one of three ways in Manhattan. The first one is the usual rental building owned by a landlord. The second is the co-op and the third are individual condo owners.
Landlord owned buildings can be either free market or stabilized. Under free market, the landlord can hike the rates up quite high once the lease runs out. Rates for stabilized buildings can’t be hiked that much, but these apartments aren’t that easy to get.
Getting into a co-op is like an obstacle course. The building is registered as a corporation, and the owners all have shares instead of direct ownership of an apartment. This means anyone who wants in has to sign on to a huge list of terms & conditions and even then, approval is a messy and long process.
Condos can be directly negotiated with owners, but each one will have different lease terms and rental rates. There’s no standard market rate here and someone who doesn’t know the rates can get taken for a lot. The point of all this is that finding New York apts is not something one should attempt without the help of a qualified real estate pro who knows every ordinance, every street and apartment listing inside out.
NY Rentals and NYC Rent can be searched via Mark David’s NYC Real Estate Website.