General real estate questions/issues

the psycho-ologist · September 2011

Hi folks

I am finally going to be able to escape I mean move, to a place where I can finally live. I am looking to move in the early part of next year, but I am giving myself time to really research things. I need to know the following, especially from those of you who live in

Park Slope,

Gowanus,

Greenwood Heights

Windsor Terrace

Ditmas Park

South Slope

Kensington

1) How did you find your apartment? As in did you use a realtor, if so who, and what should I look for or avoid in realtors?

2) I want to live in a one bedroom preferably in a building with more than 5 tenants. What should I be paying a month MAXIMUM to live in the areas above. The place needs to be cat friendly.

3)Due to past mistakes my credit is not that great, but my income starting in October will be very good with potential to make more if I decide to adjunct. I was making low 50's but will make more starting in October, however I still must consider my student loans which will take a chunk of my change.

Is there a way that I can prove my tenant "worthiness" without using a credit score?

4) Are there other quiet decent areas I should be considering that aren't TOO far from transportation to the East Village and to Flatlands Brooklyn, where I will have to travel to regularly. I'd rather that the longer commute be to Flatlands than to the East Village.

5) Are there any tips/leads/websites/important info someone like me who is hunting for an apartment should know?

I am a single child-free woman with two cats, who wants to be safe, and sleep peacefully at night and live decently.

6) Are there any trustworthy Websites for figuring out what apartments are available and how much I would be paying to live in certain areas? I would love a website that would give ACCURATE information about the REAL neighborhood borders. I am finding that too many apt listings I see make LIBERAL use of the phrases "around...area" and "possible one bedroom". I mean since when is Crown Heights Prospect Heights and Kensington Flatbush? I won't even begin with the "south slope" listings that are TWO BLOCKS away from where I live in the HEART of Sunset Park

Thanks for all your tips, advice, leads and information..

catwalkertexasranger · September 2011

don't talk to any realtors. Don't go searching around areas you may like to live. Don't do anything until you talk to a bank. Not a loan broker, a banker. Ask them how much you can afford now. Ask them to provide you with a simple table that you can use to calculate mortgage, insurance,all kinds including PMI. You need to know how much you are pre-approved

for that include a figure for maint/common fees. It will make you happier in the long run. Also if it is suggested that you need a small or large campaign to do credit repair get started as soon as possible.Make sure the money is in place before you get your hopes really high.

tateinbk · September 2011

Hi,

Until very recently I lived in Prospect Heights between Flatbush and Vanderbilt. It's not quite Park Slope, but close, so maybe I can share my experiences in getting that apartment?

1)I did use a realtor. I used the same one for that place in 09 and more recently with my newer place. I liked that he was honest about the general pitfalls about the place. He was also quite upfront about the specific landlord/management co. I would be dealing with. Most recently I started looking a little over a month in advance. Both MySpace Realtors and Lang refused to even show me a place until I was at least looking to move within 2 weeks. this made me very frustrated. The one I used did not have this problem. I would be happy to share his name and info. I fear he may not work extensively within the areas you are looking for, but it would be worth contacting him I think. There are moments he appears a little shifty, and it always makes me uncomfortable to give all my personal info to someone I don't know. He has come through for me twice though in helping me find a place that exactly fit my criteria both times.

People on this site will tell you it is possible to find a non-realtor place. Those places are so few on the ground you should consider it amazing, shocking luck if you find one. I wouldn't count on it though. It seems like you really know the borders of the neighborhoods. If a realtor says differently I would give them one chance to show honesty and then back slowly away from them. I find lying about neighborhoods to be criminal.

2)Unfortunately I'm not going to be a great deal of help here. I would be horrified if you couldn't find a true one bedroom for $1650 in one of these neighborhoods. My only concern for you would be in areas that are heavy in brownstones like Park Slope, it might be hard to find a building with more than 6 or more units where at least one was a full-sized 1 Bed.

3)There are two ways that I have run across to prove tenant worthiness in the face of iffy credit. The first is to have a guarantor who lives in NYC, preferably owns, and makes at least 80 times the rent of your place. The second way is to provide the landlord/Management Co. with two or three months additional rent upon moving in. This could be first months rent + security + brokers fee (usually one months rent) + two or three months rent. It can be insanely expensive. I did this with my place in Prospect Heights though and the Management Co was totally legit and I got my money back when I moved out, no problem.

4) I'm sorry, I don't feel sure enough to suggest anything here. Is any train convenient to getting to the subway wasteland of the LES?

5)Pick a moving company that has lots of good reviews on Yelp. If they don't show up there be very suspicious. It's not quite what you asked, but it's easy to forget about the moving until the last minute and I now think it's really important.

Spring and Fall are heavy rental seasons. You're going to be able to find apartments for a little less in the winter months. Be really sure to ask as many people as possible in the neighborhoods about the area since we all know summer activity is a completely different world than the winter. This is where having a realtor you can put a little bit of trust in can really really help. (Can you ever fully trust a Realtor?)

6) I want to declare a week Truth in Craigslist Advertising and have everyone flag any improperly placed CL ads. It makes me so flipping frustrated. I did find www.padmapper.com to be helpful. It's search options really lay out for me what nearby places were going for. It combines craigslist ads with another one I can't remember right now.

Be really wary of words like cozy. And when an ad says it is 10 minutes from (fill in the blank nice neighborhood) check first if they mention via what method of transportation.

Good luck. I spent a number of months before I moved looking at ads (although not apartments) so that when I went into active search mode I could grab something fast if it fit my needs. As you begin Active Search Mode have all your financial papers copied and arranged in preparation too.

badadvice · September 2011

The 'multiple dwelling' (more than 6 apartments) is a thing of the past, at least in WT, PS, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill. All apartment buildings went condo/coop at some point and now you rent from owner and can get bounced in 30 days. I live in WT since 1968 - left my big run down rent stabilized place in 2000, paying less than $600. Landlord was overjoyed to hear of my engagement (which dissolved), put wired the apartment so you can have AC without blowing a fuse if you turn on a light and tripled the rent! I now pay 2400/mo - apt is nice, but not even a true 2 BR (1 BR has no window) but hopefully my son will marry soon. A decent true 1 BR in WT (appliances not from the 1950s, floors not splintering under your feet, no vinyl floors, a bathroom without a pull chain - saw 2!) in WT is upward of $2000 - no washer, dryer, dishwasher, yard, patio, most houses are attached. RESEARCH: visit the block at odd hours: a quiet sunday afternoon might not reveal the wild saturday nights that go on and you don't find that out until you are already in the house! If your place is on a main dreg with stores? Deliveries start at around 4 AM, private sanitation (dumpsters just get dropped from about 12 feet back to sidwalk) around the same time; oil deliveries start a bit earlier - 2-3 AM. And the highway is close - NOISY. The more residential and quiet the block, the more you pay.

armchair_warrior · September 2011

I rented out mostly through craigs list and from word of mouth tenants friends etc...

I just see realtors taking a chunk of money off tenants for providing no real services with the internet around.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/jump/acris.shtml

good to check up small landlords, this way if someone is fishy or nigerian scams, they claim to be the landlord, ask what's their name . and if their name doesn't match up with the records. etc.. use common sense. ask for id . i won't mind showing potential tenants my id LOL.

http://www.rentometer.com/ is your friend so make sure you aren't over paying(i think it also has rental listings now days)

http://www.zillow.com/ also has rental listing these days(very good to check for houses for sale though )

armchair_warrior · September 2011