What is the Best Way to Find a Cheap Apartment Rental in NYC?
Everyone knows that NYC can be quite costly. In fact, it’s one of the most expensive places in the world to live. But it’s possible to live cheaply in New York if you’re willing to make some big trade-offs. Let’s take a look at what you can do to find cheap apartment rentals and live more affordably in NYC.
NOTE: To search for NYC apartments go to frele.com (free service). Or, click for more rental tips
8 Tradeoffs for a Cheap Apartment Rental in NYC
1) Location. Rental costs vary depending on where the apartment is located. For example, obviously rentals in the West Village and SoHo in Manhattan will be more expensive than most other places in New York City.
You can get cheaper apartment rentals from neighborhoods like East Harlem in Upper Manhattan, and Crown Heights and Bed Stuyvesant in Brooklyn. Also some cheap apartments can be found in parts of the Lower East Side in Manhattan.
You can also find cheap apartment rentals in boroughs like Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx where rent is substantially less than Manhattan.
One tip is to consider neighborhood and buildings with a significant walking distance to the subway. Generally the closer you are to a subway, the more expensive the apartment.
2) Grab a roommate. Living with others can help you save money. Finding just a room where the main living spaces are shared with other roommates will help you find affordable apartments with an average of $1,000 to $1,500 per room. You can even get cheap apartment rentals for under $1,000 if you look – for example – in Upper Manhattan or some of the neighborhoods in Brooklyn mentioned above, like Crown Heights and Bed Stuyvesant.
3) Super small space. While there are many NYC renters who live in apartments that are smaller than usual, you can go ultra small to get a cheap apartment rental. In the first few years that I lived in Manhattan, I paid $700 a month for a 6 x 8 foot room. It was small but there was enough room for a loft bed, so I made it work (My desk was underneath the bed!). The trick is to get space-saving furniture (i.e. single bed with drawer storage) so you can maximize the limited space.
4) Skimp on amenities. You can also find cheap apartment rentals if you’re willing to forgo amenities. Try to look for a building without a doorman, elevator, and other basic amenities like a dishwasher, washer/dryer, and central air. For buildings without elevators (aka walk-ups), apartments that are on the 4th, 5th, and 6th floors are usually cheaper than those found on lower floors.
5) Un-renovated spaces. Some apartments have not been renovated in a long time. Some really cheap apartment rentals can be uncovered here. They usually go for a discount. You can get them for much cheaper prices than renovated apartments. You do have to be careful with old apartments. If it costs you a lot of money to make the apartment habitable for you, the cheap rent may not be worthwhile.
6) Rent and convert. Some apartments have spacious common areas which can be converted into another bedroom using temporary walls or screens. This can be a great way to, say, get a two bedroom for a one bedroom price. Some cheap apartment rentals lurk in these converted spaces. See our blog post on Junior 4s as one example of this.
7) Not-so-nice views or too dark. Apartments that have horrendous views (i.e. has all 4 windows looking into a brick wall) are more affordable and can sometimes can be a great way to get a cheap apartment rental. The same could be said of rentals with atrocious lighting. These apartments don’t get as much sunlight so if the lights are turned off they tend to be very dark even if it’s daytime. If you are a vampire and the dark does not bother you, you can often get these apartments quite cheaply.
8) Basement or Ground Floor Apartments. Lastly, you can usually get a cheap apartment rental if it’s a ground floor or basement type (below grade) apartment. Bare in mind that if this space has private outdoor space then that could raise the price. Sometimes, a ground floor apartment may have a section that is below grade. You can read our blog on the pros and cons of ground floor spaces, but it’s good to remember that they’re great if you’re on a budget.
Living in NYC doesn’t have to be expensive. With a few tradeoffs, it’s possible to get a cheap apartment rental. But before making any trade-offs, you should first calculate how much rent you can afford in New York City
For more NYC rental tips, please go to frele.com/learn.
This article was written by:
Phil Horigan, NYC Real Estate Veteran
Founder, Frēlē, the free and honest NYC rental marketplace
Producer, Phil’s NYC Rental Tips [YouTube Channel]
Blogger: flowfreely.com
Instagram: @philiphorigan
Phil has been a licensed NYC real estate agent since 2004 working for some of the top real estate brokerage firms in the industry. He founded Leasebreak.com in 2013, and Frēlē in 2017. Frēlē and Leasebreak are free and transparent rental marketplaces to search for or post apartments for rent in NYC
Go to frele.com to search for NYC apartments (free service).