Manhattan apartment hunting: How do I avoid getting scammed?

Not my field, but this link might help:

http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-york-city/130763-using-realtor-find-apt-rental-really.html

Pay by postal money order for the items specified and agreed to by contract> Any "Skipping" on that becomes a Federal offence.

Put it in escrow?

Thanks, guys.

Escrow? I've never heard of anyone doing that. I'm not even sure how that would work. Maybe the money order idea...

Hmmm...isn't there a way to just check the credentials of the realtor? Can't I ask them for their real estate licence or some ID or something and then call whoever it is that keeps an eye on real estate brokers and such to make sure they're who they say they are? Of course, I have no idea who oversees the real estate agents in NYC, so that's another question...

Try this link:

www.oag.state.ny.us/realestate/realestate.html

Scroll down to the bottom of the page and, under the heading, "Other Home Pages," click on "NYS Dept. of State Regulation of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons."

Once you're on that page, look at the list of options on the right. Click on "Search for Licensees & Registrants." Scroll down to the bottom of the page.

You can look up the broker using their name, ID #, or business name.

Ooh, that sounds promising. You are such a smart kitty cat!

It's like I always say, "never ask a dog when you could ask a cat."

How did the meeting go? Do we need to start organizing a housewarming party?

By the way, what the heck does a real estate broker do to earn a $9000 fee for a rental apartment?

That is unheard of out here in California. We just have first and last month rent deposit plus a cleaning deposit. They are starting to also charge fees and deposits for pets. But none of it comes close to a $9000 fee and the fee is paid to either the building owner or his/her management company not a middle person. So I'm curious...what do you get in return for that $9000?

You get nothing. The fee is legal extortion, plain and simple. The only reason they can get away with it is because it is very very hard to find an apartment without a broker in Manhattan. Most landlords work through brokers and the prospective tenant gets the joy of paying for that luxury. It's complete bullshit, in my opinion, but it is just the way things work. The fees in Manhattan are usually only around 15% of the annual rent though, which is still a lot, but not as insane as this one. This one was higher because they figured they could get away with it, since the apartment was such an incredible "deal."

Which, for someone other than me, it actually might have been. I didn't like the fact that all the building's garbage cans were about two feet outside the main windows of the place. To me, that spells rats and roaches and horrible smells. Also, it was dingy, I would have had to buy a new air conditioner and a refridgerator, and the bathtub looked really nasty. So I passed, even though the realtor said that the $9000 fee was not written in stone, and that if I could come up with at least $6000 I could probably get the place.

Next!

You may as well take the $9000, or $6000 and set it on fire.

No shot of buying a studio/1br, and if you move out have the rental income at lease come very close to paying the mortgage? How much is a studio in a decent area, and what do they sell for as condos?

I've looked, and right now, in a desirable area of Manhattan, for a 400-square-foot studio, which is about the smallest space I think I could ever handle living in, it's at least $200k. Add on to that the monthly maintenance fees, which are usually at least $400 bucks a month or so, and you've got yourself a good chunk of change to pay out every month.

I don't know how people do it. And that's for the cheapest apartments in Manhattan. Of course, I could probably find a dump in one of the "up and coming" neighborhoods, like Spanish Harlem, for example, but that would entail me living in a pretty crappy neighborhood for about ten years until the neighborhood actually "up and comes." I guess I could find something like that to rent out, but usually they have stipulations on condos that you have to live in it for a couple years before you can sublet or rent it out.

Oh well. Maybe I'll get lucky and find a rent-stabilized super deal someday. Even though I didn't take that last one, it gives me hope that at least there might actually be a deal or two to be had at some point.

Keep an eye on the obituaries and wedding announcements in the paper.

move to Portland Or

Manhattan is expensive. The real estate, the food shopping, the dining. But, many people are willing to spend their money to live there.

Some (younger) folks, after they spend some time in Manhattan, are accepting to a short subway ride to a few neighborhoods in Brooklyn: Park Slope, Brooklyn Heights, or Williamsburg. Not cheap, but not Manhattan prices. They oftentimes even like the more quiet residential nature of these neighborhoods. Other's crave the 24/7 pulse of Manhattan.

While Manhattan is interesting for "people watching," some people, I believe, are living there, because they believe that living in Manhattan makes them appear to be "somebody." Some people, in my opinion, leave their apartments and step onto the sidewalk as though they have walked onstage. Many people in Manhattan are very aware of people noticing them; I think that is often the purpose of wearing something unique. A degree of stylized fashion.

And the number of dogs in Manhattan is amazing. All sizes of dogs. And in Manhattan (all the boroughs actually), dog poo must be picked up off the sidewalk (in a plastic bag). I would guess many Manhattanites need a dog to feel they are not coming home to an empty apartment.

Manhattan once had a majority population of native New Yorkers. I'd guess today, the majority of Manhattanites are transplants from somewhere else. Yet, many are ready to call themselves New Yorkers once they feel acclimated to the busses and subways. Yet, many rarely go outside of the one borough Manhattan.

How do you know so much, Foofie?

I'm curious too.

BTW, kicky. I just finished watching House Hunters on cable. This week, they're in Manhattan. The host said that co-ops and condos are going for about $1,000 a square foot! The apartments that were shown were small.

I started to watch that but couldn't bear the host, Star Jones. When did she start on HGTV?

I agree, eoe, that she's irritating as hell. I don't think she's a permanent fixture on HGTV. I've seen her only when they're apartment hunting in NYC. BTW, didn't watch the show all the way through. Too despressing. That's what you get for $400,000?

Kicky, you've got your work cut out for you.