I can't believe I still haven't found an apartment. (P.S.--Help) (Pelham: hardwood floors, lease)
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Are you currently working and do you have proof? The few places I have spoken to said I could show them an offer letter for a job in the tri-state area stating what my salary will be when I move or recent paystubs. Of course they want tax returns for the past 2 years also, so that will show them that I am used to making that level of income. Do you have an offer letter or employment contract to show?
Sorry to hear this,Nala.
I always found personally that the best way to find an apartment was on foot. Pick a neighborhood,Pelham Parkway let's say.Go there early in the AM and walk up and down the blocks.You will find lots of signs on the fronts or sides of buildings that say "apartment(s) available see super" or "inquire within"or" call xxx xxxx." You may stumble on a smaller real estate office that has listings that are not advertised anywhere other than their window.All of this also enables you to get a real feel for a neighborhood and what blocks or buildings you might want to avoid.
Most all NY buildings have a sign somewhere on front that has the management company name and phone number, even if they don't have an apartments available sign.
I'm not in the city right now otherwise I would go out today and get some numbers off of buildings and send them to you.I'll be back next week.
Good luck !
Put yourself in the position of the landlord. Are you at present
working, right now? If not, I would not even talk to you unless you
wanted to put a years rent in my hands. Leave of absence could mean
anything in spite of the pay stubs. Parkchester is big enough to have a constant string of
renters who do not pay and have to be evicted which takes time and
money. I trust you and believe you but they cannot afford to and have
many years of experience that I don't have. I've been gone awhile from
the area and also find it hard to believe you're having this much
trouble. The folks here have given you good suggestions. Good luck!
I have put myself in the place of the property owners. I have never stopped working. That is not the point. Even on my leave of absence, I was working. I can see now how confusing this must be to people who are not in the academic world. This is not about me. Apartment searching in NYC does take longer than one week. When I was in Wisconsin, my thinking was similar to yours. How hard can this be? Trust me, or if not me do some online inquiries and talk to other New Yorkers, it's harder than you think. There is a culture here now of fear, understandably, and greed.
I appreciate all the feedback, but we can all do without the judgments.
Are you currently working and do you have proof? The few places I have spoken to said I could show them an offer letter for a job in the tri-state area stating what my salary will be when I move or recent paystubs. Of course they want tax returns for the past 2 years also, so that will show them that I am used to making that level of income. Do you have an offer letter or employment contract to show?
Thanks, newyorker24. I have all of the above. I will just persevere.
My husband and I are in a similar boat as we are moving out there without "jobs" (I do freelance work, we both are actors--the reason for the move, and we are restaurant workers (of which all of our friends and associates tell us out there, there is an abundance of work)). We also DO have a lot of money saved up, however what I would recommend is looking for a sublet. We really lucked out and got a beautiful furnished one for 8 months, so that will give us plenty of time to get settled and acclimated, as well as see if that neighborhood is for us or look elsewhere. Subletting often takes a lot of the crazy requirements asked for by brokers and real estate agents out of the picture. In fact, very often none or very little of that is needed. Do be careful, of course, of scams but since you are already there (as opposed to us who are still across the country for another month), you should easily be able to avoid problems. There are a lot of longer terms sublets on craigslist and I find the scams are pretty obviously so.
I think this is very common (subletting) when people first move here. In fact the woman will be renting from said we are pretty lucky because when she first moved to NY years ago she moved from sublet to sublet for the first 1-2 years.
Hope this helps!
Yes, I have been considering subletting. This will give me more time to find the right apartment. Thank you.
Sorry to hear this,Nala.
I always found personally that the best way to find an apartment was on foot. Pick a neighborhood,Pelham Parkway let's say.Go there early in the AM and walk up and down the blocks.You will find lots of signs on the fronts or sides of buildings that say "apartment(s) available see super" or "inquire within"or" call xxx xxxx." You may stumble on a smaller real estate office that has listings that are not advertised anywhere other than their window.All of this also enables you to get a real feel for a neighborhood and what blocks or buildings you might want to avoid.
Most all NY buildings have a sign somewhere on front that has the management company name and phone number, even if they don't have an apartments available sign.
I'm not in the city right now otherwise I would go out today and get some numbers off of buildings and send them to you.I'll be back next week.
Good luck !
Bluedog2, you rock. Thank you so much for all your help and great advice. I am finally realizing that the internet can only go so far--kinda like dating and job searching. People can represent or misrepresent themselves any way they want to hook you in and then turn out to be nothing of the sort. I will definitely be beating the pavement from now on. Something will break for me soon. I just have to persevere. Thank God we are in between semesters and that I can actually get some teacher prep work done on the trains.
Bluedog2, you rock. Thank you so much for all your help and great advice. I am finally realizing that the internet can only go so far--kinda like dating and job searching. People can represent or misrepresent themselves any way they want to hook you in and then turn out to be nothing of the sort. I will definitely be beating the pavement from now on. Something will break for me soon. I just have to persevere. Thank God we are in between semesters and that I can actually get some teacher prep work done on the trains.
Hi Nala, welcome home! I also see many signs on buildings out here in Bay Ridge, which by the way, has many great deals. I don't know if you would even consider Bay Ridge but if so, let me know and I'd be happy to jot down some numbers for you. Also, you may want to put up your own ad in Craigslist's "apts. wanted" section. You will get a lot of realtor's as well as private landlords responding. Like you, I was extremely proactive in my apartment search and ultimately that's how I got this place, my landlord found me.
Hi Nala, welcome home! I also see many signs on buildings out here in Bay Ridge, which by the way, has many great deals. I don't know if you would even consider Bay Ridge but if so, let me know and I'd be happy to jot down some numbers for you. Also, you may want to put up your own ad in Craigslist's "apts. wanted" section. You will get a lot of realtor's as well as private landlords responding. Like you, I was extremely proactive in my apartment search and ultimately that's how I got this place, my landlord found me.
Hey makossa, thanks a lot. It's great to be back. I tell you, even this apartment searching has been fun in a way. Getting out there and meeting new people every day, and getting to know NYC all over again, including neighborhoods I never even knew existed.
Not too sure about Bay Ridge. Afraid it might not be a good fit.
As for posting a Craigslist ad, the thought has crossed my mind several times. Had a great showing out in Pelham Parkway area today. I am keeping all my options open nonetheless. We shall see...
Thanks, everyone. I found my dream apartment in the Pelham Parkway area yesterday--via an angel of a broker.
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