another "what will i make and will it be enough" thread :o) (real estate)

[Ariakkas]

im contemplating a move to NYC and have a couple questions.

im an uncertified sign language interpreter, so if anyone has any info on this field specifically, it'd be much appreciated. but here's what i got.....

i currently work for a national company that should let me transfer to NYC(im checking into this now), but its a part time with less than 30 hours a week. i figure i can supplement this with freelance work throughout the city. from what little i could find on the internet it seems ASL terps are in ridiculously high demand in NYC, to the point that people have to request terps weeks in advance. im also contemplating the EIPA and doing k-12 interpreting, so if anyone has any info on that as well, it'd be much appreciated. im totally lost as to what my salary would be in NYC(im looking into that as well) but from my 30 hour a week job here in the south, i make about 26k, not counting freelance work i do etc. anyone know what that salary might look like in NYC?

im not looking to live the manhattan lifestyle, ive been looking at Astoria as a good place to start. and i would most likely be living with a random roommate i come across. ive read on here that the vacation rentals on craigslist are scams, but in the roommate section of say, queens for example, it seems like there is some deals that may be too good to be true. perhaps im missing something. are those ads truthful? the office is in manhattan, and from what i can tell, astoria isnt too bad of a commute.

if everything works out, id just sell my car, haul all my furniture to the dump, and show up with a backpack full of clothes and see what NYC has to offer me. all i need is a place to sleep and a beer in my hand. assuming i could scratch out 35-45k, what do you guys think, doable? worth it? not worth it?

thanks

[Henna]

Which ones look too good to be true? Don't post links, just post a few words so that the listing could be found in a search (you can't post links here to specific properties). Also, there is a real estate section in the classifieds area of the online Astorians. Google Astorians and you should find it.

My personal gut feeling is that most of the roommate ads are true if they seem true (have photos and seem like they were written by real people). Remember, some people do have very low rent for various reasons, and if their rent is stabilized, they are not allowed to overcharge a roommate and make them pay more than half (or so) of the full rent.

[Ariakkas]

in regards to the ads....

share room, or room to share means you're splitting a single room with another person correct?

and people who dont require you to sign a lease, but want more than a months rent upfront, whos this money going to, and whats up with a security deposit in this situation?

is it normal to rent a room for 500-700 and it not be a total roach fest? or is it a matter of you get what you pay for?

heres an example of what looks like too good to be true...ill omit the cross-street location

Mod cut

so what are they not saying here? its supposedly for a 2 bedroom apartment, for $550/month in astoria

i apologize ahead of time if i posted too much info

edit**also, what are the chances of getting a lease with a less than stellar credit rating?