Yes, it’s very trendy and supposedly just as expensive. If Manhattan search is a bust, then he may consider Brooklyn or Jersey City.
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I feel better that the parental guarantor issue is something we really can’t avoid. We will move forward as planned and share the journey in case it may help others in a similar scenario.
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D19 didn’t find any apartments that would rent without this. They may exist, but they may also not be the kind of places you’d want to be renting in.
She’s currently in Brooklyn, about a 20 minute subway ride from Manhattan. (And yes there’s a TJ nearby)
Have you considered rent guarantee insurance ?
Thank you for sharing your D’s experience.
My sister in the early 90s lived in Manhattan with a roommate in a 5th floor walk up one year. They were so depressed that year because the place was absolutely gross. They also could hear cockroaches crawling once the lights were turned off.
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If having a roommate can’t be avoided, then it would make sense to prioritize a rental unit with dishwasher. (Yea, then the problem becomes making sure it is emptied. But the look is neater than a sink of dirty dishes.)
No, I wasn’t aware of it until you mentioned it. I’ll ask the broker if she thinks that will help.
I think the first apartment issue is the hardest because there’s no work history, no pay stub, and past tax returns will not reflect the new salary.
D’s apartment (sharing with roommates) is both bigger (significantly) and cheaper than what they could find in Manhattan. Parts of Brooklyn are also very trendy with that age group at the moment. There are a number of local places for them to hang out but they also live on a lovely fairly quiet tree-lined street with mostly 3-story houses (I think many are split into apartments like theirs is - they have a whole floor in that). That said, I’m not sure how easy it is to meet people - they mostly hang out with people they met through college or work who live in the area. Fwiw, D lived in the east village for 4.5 years (although mostly in NYU dorms) before.
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Thanks for the call-out!
I had an apartment in the city for a couple of years and my daughter has one now with a roommate on the northern tip of Murray Hill. High paying recent grad jobs sound great, but in NYC… let’s say they need more money and leave it at that.
Agree with others that you will be the guarantor, especially if you have aspirations for him to be living alone.
If you are looking at “reasonably close” and “almost” affordable start with lower east side and then try Brooklyn. There are other great places like Soho, West Village, East Village, and Tribeca - but those are 25%+ or more. Murray Hill is not bad either and is priced more than lower east and less than the others. You might want to peak into NJ and see where “The Path” takes him relative to where he will be working.
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Just about all apartments on his campus have dishwasher (and in unit W/D). Even with a dishwasher, some young men (maybe some young women) do not rinse and put things in the dishwasher or empty clean dishes from the dishwaters. Our S was always so annoyed that his past roommates just left things in the sink. Some will even put dirty dishes in the dishwasher with clean dishes already washed.
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Does your child commute into the city everyday? That’s a long ride from Ocean Grove.
And even if they do, if they have a car - well NYC is insane - taxes, costs and more - but you save on the car/insurance/registration, etc….a lot!!!
It’s S’s aspiration to live alone. I would prefer that he has roommates, but mainly so he won’t be so lonely. I am hoping he will find friends via work and at the climbing gym.
I was searching online at places in Murray Hill, south Midtown, Lincoln Center areas as possibilities. I stopped looking because I was just wasting time going down the rabbit hole.
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Is streeteasy still a thing? If it is, I found something on there once, years back.
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The many of the people I know who live in NYC, primarily friends’ kids, keep their cars at their parent’s house. Between gas, tolls and congestion pricing, it’s crazy to drive in.
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Our kids found that the list of “must haves” was quickly whittled down once they saw what was available! The roommate turned into a necessity- it meant they could have a fun lifestyle in addition to a decent place to live. YMMV. Matching with someone from his company that he doesn’t know but agrees to a roommate contract type deal could be a possibility. They don’t need to become friends. They likely don’t WANT to be friends. They want a clean kitchen, a chore rotation to take out the garbage, run the vacuum, clean the shower, quiet during working hours when they are home, and an agreement that overnight guests need to be approved in advance. They can be cordial apartment-mates with an agreement in place.
Try to keep an open mind about “not Manhattan” as long as the subway ride (or Path from NJ) is convenient. It opens up a bunch of “safe, family neighborhoods”. Not trendy, but no bars letting out at 2 am with rowdy folks on the sidewalk.
I think the guarantor is hard to get out of.
Your kid may have luck asking other employees (is there a Slack channel set up for newbies?) if they know of a sublet. People get transferred temporarily, people get married and are loath to give up an affordable lease, someone’s partner is starting a residency in Colorado on July 1 and his/her apartment is up for grabs for the 11 months left on what was a two year lease. This avoids the brokers fee…My kids had a wide range of sublets ranging from a gorgeous apartment with an illegal handshake (building did not allow sublets) to decent and cheap in a fun neighborhood. These are word of mouth typically….
Good luck….
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Maybe this could be an option? The firm’s meeting with new class may help him consider things. I’ll mention to him to keep an open mind.
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It’s fine to live alone if that’s what they want.
My son and I have this discussion.
“Dad, I have no money, It’s crazy how expensive California is.”
“Son, you could save probably $1K a month if you had a roomate - that’s net - so $12K a year”
“Dad, I don’t want a roommate - hated it in college and when I lived with Olivia in my first rotation - she told me she’s clean and she was flat out gross - never again”.
“Son - it’s fine you live alone but then don’t complain about money. You’ve made a choice. I’m not saying it’s the wrong choice but it is a choice”
This discussion is like rinse and repeat.
If someone truly wants to live alone, they can afford to, and they make that choice, there is nothing wrong with that choice - as I tell my son. But - it is a choice.
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ahhhh - my nephew has no car. When he went to the Cape, they took a train to somewhere in CT and rented one. So I’m thinking this student - if they spend $4k a month - but won’t have any car costs - just subway - which will be much less…or i suppose tax/uber but they can control that.
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Oh no, she works mainly from home. I have 5 kids in their 20’s, we live 10 miles from nyc so many of the kids’ friends live/work in manhattan and live in the area, but most have roommates.
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