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My sister and i have been looking for apts in Astoria/LIC/Ditmas Steinway area, and its been a month now and my experience has been just uncomfortable, sad and bad at the same time. I thought Astoria was a diverse area and the whole racist thing was all out the window.
About me/sister. we both have good city jobs make over 120k combined, have excellent/good credit score, don't smoke or drink---- late 20's and early 30's---- go to school.
---you would think we could easily find apts right? Wrong
we contacted an agent to look at an apt, the landlord was not too happy to see us--- the agent was excited over the phone to speak with me but as soon as he saw us in person it went down hill. he made every excuse in the book and i though i was just over reacting and still put in the application the same day with a deposit. the next day he calls and says we were declined, because the landlord will not be renting the apt anymore.
-I had my friend(white) call the same realtor, she was shown the same apt and they were ready to approve her on the spot. her is credit fair.
-It happened again with another broker all too excited to rent until they meet me in person, then all of a sudden the landlord is out of town for a month... so sad
-I had one broker proceed/ insist the apt in the projects was more suitable for me.
I guess i could just stick to Harlem but i really love Astoria and this whole experience has left a bitter taste. will take my excellent credit and rent some where else, this is 2015 i don't get why people cannot see beyond color.
This is beyond frustrating....
Well I have no doubt these type of landlords exist but I'm not sure why you are allowing one bad experience to turn you off to an entire neighborhood. And I have first hand experience with black women successfully renting apartments in Astoria.
That's too bad. It does still happen in this day and age. I would imagine making a formal complaint with the appropriate city agency would be much more effective than posting anonymously to a message board. Fair Housing NYC - Filing a Complaint
My sister and i have been looking for apts in Astoria/LIC/Ditmas Steinway area, and its been a month now and my experience has been just uncomfortable, sad and bad at the same time. I thought Astoria was a diverse area and the whole racist thing was all out the window.
About me/sister. we both have good city jobs make over 120k combined, have excellent/good credit score, don't smoke or drink---- late 20's and early 30's---- go to school.
---you would think we could easily find apts right? Wrong
we contacted an agent to look at an apt, the landlord was not too happy to see us--- the agent was excited over the phone to speak with me but as soon as he saw us in person it went down hill. he made every excuse in the book and i though i was just over reacting and still put in the application the same day with a deposit. the next day he calls and says we were declined, because the landlord will not be renting the apt anymore.
-I had my friend(white) call the same realtor, she was shown the same apt and they were ready to approve her on the spot. her is credit fair.
-It happened again with another broker all too excited to rent until they meet me in person, then all of a sudden the landlord is out of town for a month... so sad
-I had one broker proceed/ insist the apt in the projects was more suitable for me.
I guess i could just stick to Harlem but i really love Astoria and this whole experience has left a bitter taste. will take my excellent credit and rent some where else, this is 2015 i don't get why people cannot see beyond color.
This is beyond frustrating....
Yeah, it's really upsetting but hey, don't lose any sleep over it! Because those landlords are the REAL losers in this situation since they lost out on an opportunity to have wonderful creditworthy financially-stable tenants. Karma is a bish and they'll probably end up with dirtbags who will tear up the place.
Take your $business$ to somewhere where you are wanted; where you will feel comfortable and a fair deserving landlord will have the pleasure of having you. They lost out!
Yes, run don't walk to file a Fair Housing complaint. What those landlords did is absolutely against the law. If the realtor is complicit, same thing goes. Don't stand for it.
Also, don't give up on the neighborhood. Persevere.
The thing with Astoria is that most of the housing stock is old 2-3 family houses owned by even older Italian and Greek immigrants so it's not much of a surprise that racism is rampant. The broker demographics in the neighborhood are pretty similar. Yes, you should definitely file a formal complaint, you should also probably concentrate on bigger buildings run by management companies rather than private houses owned by racist landlords who are represented by their buddies from the "members only" club.
My sister and i have been looking for apts in Astoria/LIC/Ditmas Steinway area, and its been a month now and my experience has been just uncomfortable, sad and bad at the same time. I thought Astoria was a diverse area and the whole racist thing was all out the window.
About me/sister. we both have good city jobs make over 120k combined, have excellent/good credit score, don't smoke or drink---- late 20's and early 30's---- go to school.
---you would think we could easily find apts right? Wrong
we contacted an agent to look at an apt, the landlord was not too happy to see us--- the agent was excited over the phone to speak with me but as soon as he saw us in person it went down hill. he made every excuse in the book and i though i was just over reacting and still put in the application the same day with a deposit. the next day he calls and says we were declined, because the landlord will not be renting the apt anymore.
-I had my friend(white) call the same realtor, she was shown the same apt and they were ready to approve her on the spot. her is credit fair.
-It happened again with another broker all too excited to rent until they meet me in person, then all of a sudden the landlord is out of town for a month... so sad
-I had one broker proceed/ insist the apt in the projects was more suitable for me.
I guess i could just stick to Harlem but i really love Astoria and this whole experience has left a bitter taste. will take my excellent credit and rent some where else, this is 2015 i don't get why people cannot see beyond color.
This is beyond frustrating....
I would file a complaint as soon as humanly possible. It's sad that these issues still go on in 2015 in NYC. This is why hard working black people don't live in NYC anymore, pack up move upstate, or down south where racial issues and obtaining property is not much of an hassle compared to immediate areas surrounding Manhattan. The broker who said that comment to you about living in the projects. You should have them reported to whatever broker firm they work for.
Rule number one, do not go to these 2 or 3 family home dwellings. Some of these houses are owned by Greeks, Albanians, Italians and other folks who come from the Adriatic sea parts of Europe. THese folks at times have racial or biased tendencies. Also you should try and check for buildings operated, managed and owned by real estate property management companies. They might be a bit pricey, but with your income and credit score, no doubt you will obtain an apartment. Why Astoria? Astoria is a very ugly neighborhood, the only bright side is 30th avenue with bars like Don Coqui, amenities. Also the N train is crowded as hell.
Try to make a complaint as soon as possible, if not buy a gopro camera, bore a whole into your purse or use an iphone to record the context of your apartment interviews with broker and landlord as proof.
You made a smart move, having your friend try the next day. That's evidence for your complaint. Have her write down her experience, soon while she remembers exactly what was said. You too. Print it out, then, at top of the paper, write "Log written [today's date] of event that happened on [phone convo date] and sign your name there in pen. Hang onto both papers as evidence. A very recent memory, written down, is better evidence than recalling words someone said to each of you, weeks from now when the complaint ripens..
Good luck.
Also, young people of many backgrounds hang out in the newer Astoria internet cafes, including artists and transplants to NYC. Can you ask them how they like the neighborhood, where do they live, who was their broker? It's a network that you can safely tap into, maybe get some helpful leads.
Last edited by BrightRabbit; 09-21-2015 at 11:15 AM..
I once worked with a greek dude on his dad's apt in Dyker Heights. And the experience was similar but less apparent, just enough for me to feel his racial preference. He did not decline immediately after showing but he kept me on the hook for an extended while to win time to find his color-right tenant per my best assessment.
It is naive though to think or believe that racism/discrimination does not exist just because it is 20xx. It is part of human instincts although varies among different individuals. The famous "progressive" europe has abundant racial issues even the majority are white. However you do not hear much about it because they mix much less than how ppl do here in the US so the problem rarely surfaces over there.
Well I have no doubt these type of landlords exist but I'm not sure why you are allowing one bad experience to turn you off to an entire neighborhood. And I have first hand experience with black women successfully renting apartments in Astoria.
it happened with more than 1 owner, maybe its because i look young. but how is that my fault. i still love Astoria but this just turned me off completely
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and good luck 
