510-550 West 45th Street Affordable Housing (to rent, taxes, legal)

[siempre123]

Dude, what I would be "getting" would not be for next to nothing actually. And wanting all of the details and basic information about size, utilities, etc and wishing they would be provided up front is not bitching at all--I don't care what the situation is, whether I am "getting" an apartment for next to nothing or seeking one at market rate.

[Applicant]

Siempre123 is right, some of the top tier prices, while certainly a good deal, are not all that far below market rate. Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy and it's great to have a rent stabilized apartment, but it it was odd that they had no floor plans to offer or full measurements to give. I did go back again to see the apartment before I signed my lease and made up my floor plan though and the agent was very happy to show it to me again. I also asked a lot of questions. I think you have to be your own advocate here.

[siempre123]

Has anyone been asked to sign a lease for a unit in Gotham West without being able to see it in person first?
My unit is still under construction, so I have not been able to view it, but they want to me to sign off on it now...Is this a normal procedure? I'm personally quite uncomfortable with this set up...Any advice would be appreciated.

[Hkny]

Originally Posted by siempre123

Has anyone been asked to sign a lease for a unit in Gotham West without being able to see it in person first?
My unit is still under construction, so I have not been able to view it, but they want to me to sign off on it now...Is this a normal procedure? I'm personally quite uncomfortable with this set up...Any advice would be appreciated.

I signed my lease for 511 last week and will move in late October. While I didn't get to see the actual apartment because it's still being built, I got to see a similar unit in 530. The agent told me what the differences are between the 2 buildings (511 will have hardwood not parquet floors), and I also got a floor plan.

It's natural to want to see the actual unit before "signing your life away", but I think it's a measured risk taking into consideration visiting comparable units and seeing floorplans.

[siempre123]

Thanks for your response--it is good to know that other future neighbors are going through the same procedure.
I will actually be in 511 as well!
Are they nice spaces in your opinion, Hkny?

[siempre123]

And by nice, I specifically mean are they relatively spacious?

[Hkny]

I've seen floor plans for studios that are around 450-500 square feet while 1brs are around 600 square feet. I haven't seen details for 2 and 3 brs.

[need1apt]

Has anyone, after the interview then signed paper work, and got approved by the developers, had to go again to sign any more paper work before the send out your case to the city HDP? If so, what was the paper work? Strange because I heard, plus everyone I see here approved by the developers get their application sent to HDP, and only have to go to sign the lease once HDP approves...

[siempre123]

You just sign some release forms for the city that give them permission to look at your tax information during their approval process. The lease signing comes after the city approval.

[Rachel420]

I applied for this lottery too and never expected to get any response but yesterday I got some paperwork in the mail asking me to provide employment verification, landlord verification, etc. They're asking for a $50 money order when I send in the paperwork which seems a little odd to me after reading this thread. I see that everyone here is saying that they needed to bring a $25 money order with them for the interview but my letter is asking for a $50 money order to be sent in with my initial paperwork. Was anyone else asked to do this??? My log # is 83XX so I don't think my chances are good but I may still give it a try.