Do you plan to move to New York? You will surely be looking for a room for rent. We are sure that the city will give you unforgettable moments and lessons. Are You Looking for a Room for Rent | Apartment for Rent?
But, first, one of the most difficult procedures remains: finding a room for rent. Before your arrival in New York, the most prominent search query in your search box will be room for rent near me. After several years, dozens of apartments seen and a couple of moves behind, today we will tell you everything you need to know about places to rent near me in New York.
How Long Will It Take Me To Find Flats To Rent Near Me?
Before you start, we recommend that you arrive in New York with accommodation for 3 weeks to 1 month, be it a hotel, an Airbnb or a friend’s sofa.
Finding an apartment in the city takes time, and having a quiet place to sleep for the first few weeks will save you the pressure of feeling that every day is a countdown and that you have to take the first apartment you visit.
Even when you find your ideal apartment, it may not be available for a few weeks. So have a plan B.
How Should I Choose A Neighborhood With Houses To Rent Near Me Cheap?
You’ve just arrived in New York, you’re still unfamiliar with the neighborhoods, and you have no idea where to start looking for a flat, so you open a rental page and look at ads all over the city.
But our advice is to focus on just one or two neighborhoods to begin with and dig deeper. And how to choose them to find the best house to rent near me cheap?
- Calculate transportation to your job. The subway will be your main transport in New York (unless you are one of the lucky few who can walk to work) and it is important that your home is well connected to your workplace and that you do not have an endless daily commute.
- And, although the metro network covers almost the entire city, there are areas that are very poorly connected to each other.
- Open the New York subway map and Google Maps and start calculating fictitious routes between different areas and your work.
- What is the fastest metro line that takes you to work? How long does Google Maps tell you that it takes from that neighborhood to the office? A journey of 30 or 40 minutes is very normal in New York, but try not to involve more than 2 different subway lines or the trip (and possible delays) will end up being an odyssey.
- A New York subway station. Some people who work in Midtown or the Financial District also choose to live in New Jersey cities like Hoboken or Jersey City, across the Hudson River, which are well connected by PATH train or ferry.
What Are The Typical Neighborhoods In New York?
Some neighborhoods in New York to start looking for an affordable apartment where many young people live are:
- In Manhattan, Kips Bay, Murray Hill, the Upper East Side, the East Village, the Financial District, Hell’s Kitchen.
- In Brooklyn, Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Downtown Brooklyn, Bed-Stuy, Bushwick, Prospect Heights, Clinton Hill.
- In Queens, Astoria, Long Island City, Ridgewood.
How To Search For Places To Rent Near Me?
You already have a few areas in mind. It’s time to start digging deep.
First of all, keep in mind that if you work with a real estate agent, it is very likely that they will charge you a fee (commission) that can be 12 – 15% of the annual rental price up to 1 month of rent.
If they do not charge it, they will announce it to the four winds with the words no fee. Nowadays, many websites already allow you to filter and search only for no fee apartments.
And, if you work directly with the owner of the apartment (by owner), you also save that commission. In the near future, it is very possible that New York City will legislate it and not allow this fee to fall on the tenant.
Most Popular Websites To Find A Room For Rent Near Me?
To give you an idea of the market in each area, these are some of the most used websites for looking for room for rent in New York. Remember to look for For Rent instead of For Sale.
They all allow you to filter by price and number of rooms, but also by other requirements, such as whether the building has washing machines, whether it has an elevator, whether it is close to a certain metro, whether it has no fee.
- Streeteasy is the most famous of all and where most agencies publish their apartments.
- Zillow and Trulia are very similar.
- Craigslist is one more web to walk around the house, where many individuals publish their ads. Scams are more frequent, so be very careful and common sense (if it seems too cheap to be true, it is not) and do not make advance payments.
- Leasebreak is a website where some individuals who want to break their contracts (for example, let’s say you have signed a 2-year contract but want to leave after 1 year) publish their apartments to sublet them to another person for the remaining time or to transfer them.
- Gypsy Housing is a very popular Facebook group where people search for roommates, post flats. Just like with Craigslist, you have to filter well.
Conclusion
Our advice is to ask and insist as much as you can, both in the agencies and with the friends and acquaintances you have in the city. It is hard to find a room for rent in New York, and it is a time taking process. Therefore, remember to have sufficient time in your hand so that you do not have to rush while making a decision.
It is possible that someone has a vacant room, that someone leaves an apartment but still has a valid contract and wants to sublet it (subleasing), that an agent or owner agrees to pay several months of rent in advance.
