No Fee Apartment Rentals in NYC

Recessed Living in 2009

2009-12-23T14:37:00.002-05:00

It has been a tough year for New Yorkers. We have been in a deep recession that has led to pay cuts, lost jobs and will soon lead to increase taxes.

With the supply of Money decreasing and the demand increasing times have been difficult and will most likely continue this way going forward.

New York Commercial Real Estate is on a massive decline, with companies moving to cheaper and smaller space which has lead to a drop in price per sq ft. This also means that there are fewer available jobs in Manhattan.

Fewer jobs has lead to people moving to cheaper situations in outer boroughs or neighboring counties. This has created a massive price drop in rental prices in Manhattan. Landlords are dropping prices to keep people in Manhattan.

The government has continued to spend and be aggressive to add incentive to spending and provide a jolt to the economy. The first time house buyer credit gives new home buyers almost 10k assistance in buying a home. This has further encouraged bad and foolish spending by people and taking out loans that they cant afford to pay back. I believe that 2010 will a tumultuous time where government backed loans can't get paid back as people exhaust their savings trying to stay a float.

What this means is apartment rentals in Manhattan can take another deep dip. This principle a "W" recession is the idea that we will have to bottom out twice to get back to prosperity. The first bottom will be reached when the market bottoms out with government assistance holding us up. Once government assistance is pulled out from under our feet we will fall back down until prices reach a new low.

As tough as 2009 has been we have some tough times ahead of us and we can look forward to another tough year trying to stay in the black.

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year.

Read About Apartment Rental Websites for Manhattan

2009-11-18T15:49:00.002-05:00

http://www.downtownyblog.com/search?q=urban+sherpa

Check it out - this article gives props to Urban Sherpa NY

The Commercial Impact on Apartment Rentals in Manhattan

2009-11-18T14:04:00.004-05:00

Whats going in the market right now?

I would like to start this entry by explaining where the New York City Real Estate market is at. As long as you haven't been trapped without any form of communication for the past year+ you know that our economy has been hit with a recession as people have been losing jobs, wealth has been destroyed, and credit is almost non existent. The government has attempted to spend and incentive itself out of this mess by lowering interest rates, offering programs such as cash for clunkers and the $8,000 housing rebate.

All of these incentives are trying to spark the economy by having people spend more money and save less. But, people still fear investing and the same is true for business. In New York City, the overall trend has been to tighten up expenses and maintain their company. This hurts the economy because the first expense companies shed is employee salaries - they believe they can get the same amount of work done with less people. All of these jobs lost means people can't afford rents and will eventually have to move to smaller and less expensive dwellings. In turn driving demand for cheap housing up and luxury housing down. Which shrinks the overall value of buildings and real estate. Companies not looking to expand means no loans and no new employees. When companies grow they need more labor and they also need to take out loans to afford their business ventures. Investment when done by many companies increases demand for commercial real estate, skilled professionals and banks credit.

Commercial real estate has a very delayed lag. Companies generally sign leases for 5+ years so often times they get trapped in leases for a while. If you signed a 5 year lease in 2007 at the height of the economy you will be stuck paying inflated prices till 2012. As companies fire employees they free up space and sometimes start trying to sublet space or floors in their office to help with the burden of paying rent. This sublet space price is generally very cheap because companies need to space rented quickly. When more sublet space gets introduced in the market overall commercial values drop. Additionally, when companies leases expire they look for smaller and cheaper locations which creates even more available space.

With all these companies trying to save money and not grow their company. There are fewer workers and many workers take on work at discounted pays. This has lead to a great decline in our luxury rental market and a smaller decline in non-luxury & walk up apartment rentals. Many people are moving out of Manhattan to find space in Brooklyn & Queens where their dollar goes significantly further and the commute is still reasonable in terms of price and time.

As the commercial sector continues to devalue moving forward i expect residential rents in Manhattan to drop as supply will increase and demand will decline.

Response to Wall Street Journal & Rent Turnover

2009-11-06T16:49:00.001-05:00

Wall Street Journal says "Landlords offer incentives to stay put" for current renters in NYC
ORIGINAL LINK: By DAWN WOTAPKA
Amid the jobless recovery, some landlords are showering flat-screen TVs, cash, rent cuts and other incentives on tenants to encourage them to renew their apartment leases and thus avoid the expense of filling empty units.
The rise in unemployment has prompted tenants to seek roommates, move home or trade down to cheaper units. In the third quarter, the national apartment-vacancy rate hit 7.8%, a 23-year high, according to Reis Inc., which tracks vacancies and rents in the top 79 markets.
"Many companies are doing whatever they can to keep units occupied, especially heading into the seasonally slower leasing period," said Paula Poskon, an analyst with Robert W. Baird & Co.
The trends are taking a toll on the bottom line. Apartment Investment & Management Co., which owns and operates roughly 150,000 units nationwide, reported Friday that its funds from operations, a key REIT metric, fell to 19 cents a share from 60 cents a year earlier. UDR Inc., which has about 45,000 units on the West Coast and in Washington, D.C., reported earlier this month that its funds from operations dropped 42% to 19 cents.
"We do need job growth in order for our business to prosper," said David Neithercut, chief executive of Equity Residential, the country's largest apartment REIT by market capitalization. "I think 2010 will be another year of doing the best we can."
Some of the large REITs were able to keep their occupancies up. UDR managed to increase occupancy to 95.6% from 95% a year earlier. Colonial Properties Trust, which operates 35,000 Sunbelt apartments, said its third-quarter occupancy fell to 94.4% from 96%a year earlier.
Landlords attracted and retained tenants by offering incentives and rent cuts. Equity Residential said new tenants in the third quarter paid 9% to 10% less rent than the previous residents. AvalonBay Communities Inc., an upscale operator, said its decline was about the same.
Owners are focusing on keeping existing tenants because when apartments become vacated they can sit empty for months and often require marketing, painting, brokerage commissions and other expenses to attract new tenants. Denver-based UDR is offering renewing tenants a flat-screen TV, new carpet, kitchen upgrade or, $300 in cash. The money is the most popular choice, said Chief Executive Thomas Toomey,
Mr. Neithercut said Equity Residential doesn't initially offer rent cuts to existing tenants to persuade them to renew. But if the tenant plays hardball, the company asks: "What can we do to keep you?" he said.
One problem for landlords is that existing tenants can easily check the Web to see what deals new tenants are being offered. And new tenants are getting incentives like a waived pet deposit or two months' free rent.
Some landlords have also become more open-minded about tenants with credit issues involving home foreclosures. In the past, a foreclosure on a credit record could have meant an automatic denial. Now such blemishes are so commonplace that the stigma is easing. Equity Residential looks for reasonable credit history "outside of a problem that they've had with a single-family home," Mr. Neithercut said.
Another sign of the times: In New York City, landlords are paying broker fees. Typically in New York, which has traditionally been a tight rental market, tenants have to pay fees as high as 15% of a year's rent. But so far this year, Equity Residential has paid about $1.5 million in such commissions.
Apartment landlords say that one benefit of the bad market is that it has practically halted new construction. New completions are expected to be 98,000 next year and 109,000 in 2011, compared with 188,000 last year and 204,000 this year, according to Green Street Advisors Inc.
When loss rates are taken into account—the removal of units because of obsolescence—the actual addition will be immaterial. That means that when the economy rebounds, the supply will be tight, increasing landlord profits.
"I have utmost confidence in our ability to be successful when we get to there," said Mr. Neithercut. "I just don't know how far away 'there' is."

This article was featured in the Wall Street Journal and only discusses one aspect of rent renewals. To understand the issue better I have to back up and deliver the point of views from both the tenant an owner.

The tenant who has been living in an apartment for let’s say a year, has become acquainted with his apartment and it has become part of his routine. The tenant understands that moving will require, time, effort and money. The tenant will have to find a place they like, pay for application fees, broker fees, security and moving vans. These expenses add up, and could end up running a few thousand dollars. Additionally, the tenant will have to run around the city looking at different places and then if the tenant likes the place and submits an application one then has to wait to see if the owner approves them. All of these deterrents leads to most tenants renewing if they have not experienced any lifestyle changes or frustration with the building owner.

The owner wants to do as little work as possible while making as much money as possible. They would always prefer a tenant renewing as long as they paid their rent on time and have not done anything to cause issue. The owner will generally look to increase the monthly rent by 3% each year to stay in line with general inflation.

When real estate prices decline from the previous year the whole scenario veers off from the status quo. Owners can’t increase rent, to fill vacancies owners need to decrease rents, pay broker fees, or offer free rents. Tenants find out the price they are paying is more than they are renting for now. So when their lease expires and they are in a position to renew they want the deal. But owners, knowing that tenants do not want to deal with hassle of moving do not offer as good deals.

Owners who are willing to offer fair deals to their current tenants when their lease is ready to expire will lead to a low turnover %. But, many stubborn landlords who want to squeeze every penny out of their tenants will want to make as much money as possible and sometimes lose tenants by being stubborn.

If you are in a position where your lease is expiring I would suggest doing two things. First, head to urbansherpany.com to find out prices of apartments in your building and other buildings in a close proximity. Then write a letter to your landlord/owner/management company explaining the fact that you would like to continue living where you are, but have found other places at much reduced rents. Make a lowball offer saying what price you would like to live at, stating that you have always paid your rent on time and have been a good tenant. From here the landlord/owner/management company will either accept your bid (if it’s fair) or offer you their own deal. This negotiation period can be difficult, but as long as you stick with your guns the owner will generally concede a few hundred dollars to avoid the search of finding another tenant and paying a broker fee. If the owner is not willing to drop the price, just move – it can be a stressful experience, but the money you could potentially save and the increase in quality of apartment might be worth it.

Always check urbansherpany.com to find out any information on the Manhattan rental market as well as listings, guides, and market statistics.

Investment Sales in Manhattan

2009-10-23T14:38:00.003-04:00

Currently being in a recession, one would think there would be many buildings for sale in Manhattan. Investors that bought high have had trouble getting rents they expected and some even finding tenants. Luckily many of the owners of these buildings have deep pockets and are now trying to weather the storm. Current owners do not want to sell buildings now, the declining price of real estate in Manhattan means they wont be able to get a price near the levels of two years ago. These owners if they were to sell wouldn't be able to pay off their loans. There plan, hold the property and try and weather the storm until they are able to sell at a profit.

This leaves an odd predicament in the investment aspect of Manhattan. Demand is surprisingly high with numerous individuals trying to get into the game in a buy low situation. But current owners are not selling and the ones that are - will not accept offers far away from their asking which is what is generally happening.

This buyer seller disconnect will continue to press on until a rebound in the Manhattan real estate industry becomes present.

My advice, if you find someone that is interested in selling a building for a cap rate of 7.5%+ and you have good credit and enough money to get a loan - do not wait!

Rental Season At A Halt

2009-09-22T13:58:00.002-04:00

The busy summer season is officially over. Landlords have been able to bask in heat provided this summer but that heat is gone and apartment rentals are plentiful again. Many listings have fallen through the cracks this summer and rental inventory is quite high compared to past years. With so many apartments available for rent and so few potential renters looking, landlords need to compete with one and other to try and rent their apartments.

What does this all mean?

If you are looking for a rental apartment right now, weigh your options because there are many apartments available and landlords are desperate to have their buildings fill up. Negotiate your rent, work out free rent, and use UrbanSherpaNY.com to avoid brokers fee's and you can really come out with an incredible deal in Manhattan.

Ask A New Yorker - All You Need to Know About the City

2009-09-15T14:12:00.003-04:00

In a time when information is so easy to get and the web is so accessible it always difficult to determine good websites that are helpful from bad websites.

Ask A New Yorker is a website that does New York City right.

With up to the minute city guides and tips as well as a regularly updated forum with many users, fitting into the complex city of New York has never been easier. The website offers useful links that will enrich the New York experience. Where to eat, where to shop, useful websites, concerts, and much more.

Get your answers straight from New Yorkers at AskaNewYorker.com

Understanding How a No Fee Apartment Rental Website can Save you Money

2009-08-24T17:29:00.001-04:00

If you have read many of my blog entries since this blogs inception you will know most of the information I am presenting today. I will try and summarize many of the points I have made in previous blog entries to help the average New Yorker learn more about this current rental market and some helpful tips that can save them money and time.

Renting an apartment in New York City is a very odd experience that differs to pretty much every other major city in the US. For starters, in most cities the owner of a building would pay a fee to a broker for finding them a qualified tenant. In New York City, most brokers are paid by the tenants for finding them an apartment. Because of this fact, brokers are willing to work for different amounts of money. The standard fee a broker will charge is 15% but because of slumping economic times this fee has dropped to 1 months rent. Not all brokers will charge a fee; some owners in New York City will offer brokers a fee for finding them a qualified tenant. The fee a broker would receiver from the building owner is generally referred to as an OP which is 1 months rent.

There has been a misinformed stigma around apartments that require a fee paid by the tenant to no fee apartments. This has led to an increase in the price of (no fee) apartments relative to the market. As I said in a previous blog entry:

“To explain this better I will use 2 apartments for rent as an example. Apartment A and apartment B are in the same building with the same size, same view, and same amenities. The difference, apartment A is being advertised as a no fee apartment for $2,000 because the owner is paying an OP. While apartment B is being advertised as a fee apartment for $1,835. Over a 12 month lease both apartments will cost you $22,000 - no matter which you choose once factoring in the fee you have to pay a broker on apartment B.

With that said, the general public will be more interested in Apartment A because they do not have to pay the fee themselves.”

Using a website with No Fee Apartment Rentals will give you all the listings a broker would. These listings are no fee listings and fee listings. But because you are accessing the fee listings without a broker, the tenant won’t need to pay a fee to a broker making the apartment virtually No Fee.

Using this no fee apartment rental tool for a no fee apartment has even better advantages. Because the owner does not have to pay a fee to a broker they would be more inclined to reduce your rent, accept you if your credit is not strong, or offer you a month free of rent.

I hope this answers many of your questions, and if you have any additional questions do not hesitate to ask.

Hot Summer Apartment Rentals in NYC

2009-08-17T14:48:00.002-04:00

This summer has been an interesting one for Manhattan apartment rentals. It has been a period of ups and downs as the economy has been in a state of confusion. People have no clear picture as to is the economy improving, staying the same or continuing to decline. This has led to a lot of confusion in the apartment rental market. People still need a place to live, and they still want to live in Manhattan but do they still need the doorman, laundry, and the elevator? Living on the second floor of a walk up building is not that bad, and they can save a few hundred dollars on rent.

This dilemma has crossed the mind of thousands of New Yorkers this summer. Do we renew our lease or do we see if we can find a better deal in this sagging economy. Many people have choose the ladder and have hunted for apartments in more affordable neighborhoods giving up ammenities that they could live with out.

This has lead to a price stabilization in walk up apartment rentals south of 110th street. Luxury buildings have seen a different trend. With more and more people having to tighten their budgets, job layoffs, and the over development of Manhattan we have seen the price of luxury buildings plummet. The owners of these luxury buildings have had to offer their tenants free months and reduced rent just to keep their buildings filled. But, downtown in the financial district and battery park they can't give away some of the nicest apartments on the island. Many of these luxury buildings were put up in the past 5 years and have state of the art renovations, accommodations, and ammenities but yet their prices continue to drop.

The Manhattan rental market has been strong this summer but i am skeptical to see it hold up in quarter 4 2009. The summer time has always been a bullish period for apartment rentals and i do not expect this to continue. As the summer heat dies down, potential renters will decrease as apartment inventory will hold. This will lead to further price decreases in the coming months.

New Press Release

2009-08-11T17:41:00.004-04:00

New Press Release advertising Urban Sherpa's Classified section. Check it out, a lot of good information on the company and whats going on.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/nyc/rentals/prweb2735674.htm

Stay Close- More Entry's to come

The Revolutionary NYC Apartment Rental Classifieds is Here!

2009-08-03T10:48:00.002-04:00

Urban Sherpa has developed a brand new classifieds section. This section is intended to compete with New York Times online ads, and Craigslist. Urban Sherpa's service gives the best of The New York Times & Craigslist and then goes above and beyond.

Urban Sherpa’s classifieds section offers many unique packages to increase exposure to your apartment listing. Such as an email to hundreds of New York State licensed real estate agents, Twitter and Facebook status updates to thousands of New Yorkers, exclusive positioning on Urban Sherpa, and a Craigslist ad to generate even more traffic.

The price of this service is $15-$50 depending on which add-ons you select. But, for a limited time creating an ad will be half price $7.50-$25.

You can find out more about this incredible service by going to No Fee Apartment Rentals

Craigslist Competition.

2009-07-27T16:52:00.003-04:00

Urban Sherpa has done tons of market research on users and there experience with Craigslist. They have spoken to brokers, long time new yorkers and first time new yorkers to figure out what they thought of Craigslist.

The overall consensus on all three parties that Craigslist has many uses but in terms of apartment rentals it is overcrowded with fake ads and has to many duplicate ad postings. They called up many numbers on ads to find brokers using the old "Bait and Switch" technique which involves posting fake ads just to get their phone to ring. Then they say lines like, that apartment is rented but i have another one you might like. In addition to fake ads our test groups said they came across the same apartments being posted over and over again by different agents.

Brokers felt a little different a bout there experience using Craigslist. They felt that Craigslist was a good forum for them to advertise to the public at a low cost. They did show frustration over the fact that many of the people who call on their ads are not serious renters or looking for a place in a few months.

Urban Sherpa feels they have the know how and website tools to create a classified apartment section to combat all the problems with Craigslist. They feel that making owners pay a small fee to post there ads will lead to them posting more accurate and detailed ads as well as fewer ads. In addition, brokers wont post ads posing as owners because they have to pay to post and Urban Sherpa will regulate all posts on their classified section.

Owners will benefit greatly from Urban Sherpa's classified section because they will be offering many tools and addons to have apartments get lots of traffic in a short period of time to see apartments rented quickly.

Look out for Urban Sherpa's classifieds section, it will change the New York Rental Market. It should be live before August 1st. When it goes live check back for coupons and discounts.

Remediable Urban Sherpa will always be free for the public to use!

Urban Sherpa NY in the New York Times

2009-07-14T16:07:00.002-04:00

This sunday Urban Sherpa NY was featured in the Sunday edition of the New York Times. We can be found in the Real Estate section under the weekly column called "The Hunt"

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/12/realestate/12hunt.html?ref=realestate

The article was about a couple that was having a tough time finding an apartment that really suited what they were looking for. After working with numerous brokers and not finding anything suitable for there needs they made there way over to www.urbansherpany.com where they had a great time running around the city themselves at there own pace looking at apartments. They found one through Urban Sherpa NY and was able to negoitate a free month of rent into the lease because there was no broker involved.

This couple was extremely happy about saving close to $1,600 so they volunteered to go to the NY Times to tell the public about what a great service Urban Sherpa really is.

Thank you Jose & Andrea enjoy the apartment.

Tough times and how to get through it

2009-07-10T12:17:00.002-04:00

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past 4 months you know that our economy is depressing into shambles and we are officially in a recession. Money is shooting out of the pockets of the population and unemployment is steps away from double digits. Barack Obama promised the people that with his recovery plan worth close to 800 billion dollars, the country would improve and more and more jobs will be created. He specifically said that if his plan didn't go through our unemployment could reach 10%. Well the bill passed and 10% unemployment here we come. In an interview Vice President Joe Bidden said that the president and his staff underestimated the severity of the recession and implied that more government spending is the only way to get out of it. As if 800 billion wasn't enough - we have to let this play out but being someone that voted for Obama, I put my faith in his ability for 4 years and i need to support him. I believe his approach to this recession has been to ideoligical and socialist in approach.

Enough about politics -- the good stuff -- Real Estate.

The largest expense people have is where they live, and in tough times where someone lives and how they live is the best way to stay above. Millions of people who were given un-warranted loans for homes are realizing they cannot afford there mortgage payments and are looking to sell. But, the price they need to sell the house at to pay off their mortage is much less than the price people are willing to buy the house at. This has led to the largest inventory of residential real estate available in a real long time. The only way to sell a property now is to cut your losses and take a very low offer.

It will be tough for home owners with mortgages, but for everyone else that resisted temptation and has been renting - Congratulations. You are in the best rental market in decades. In Manhattan 1 bed room apartments that were renting for $2,500 last year are now renting for $1750. Dive in, just take a look at apartments for rent in New York City click on knowledge base -> current market statistics to see for your self. Neighborhoods like the West Village which for the past decade has been reserved to the financial elites has suddenly become affordable.

The other thing about New York City's residential real estate situation is the borough shift. Previously people that could not afford to live on Manhattan but still desired the New York City vibe people would move to Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, Staten Island, The Bronx, or New Jersey because transportation was cheap as well as property value. Now those individuals that have managed to hold on to their jobs are moving back to the city. The outer boroughs are getting hit hard as rental inventory is through the roof while Manhattan has held its ground compared to the others.

Just something to consider before you make your next move.

Manhattan Real Estate Market Statistics and Guides

2009-07-07T14:07:00.004-04:00

There is a wealth of knowledge available on the internet. Especially in regards to sales and rentals.

If you are interested in information on apartment sales take a look at Urban Digs which will let you know how many apartments there are for sale at any given time, if the sale price is being reduced and by what percent, and how many new listings hit the market and how many sold within a day.

In terms of rental statistics, i would suggest heading to No Fee Rentals from Urban Sherpa - this page offers a fun tool that lets you know how much you can expect to pay for each neighborhood in Manhattan in regards to size, bathrooms, if the building has a doorman, elevator and laundry.

Hope this can help, good luck in your apartment rental hunt.

What is a co-op apartment and how can i go about renting one?

2009-07-01T11:57:00.004-04:00

Co-op literally is a housing cooperative meaning a corporation owns the building. Owning a share of a co-op is like owning a share of a company. If you own a share of the corporation you are allowed to live in the building.

With a co-op you do not own the apartment you live in. Rather you own a piece of the corporation that allows you to live within the building. For example with a condo you own the unit within the building (own the walls and floors) & with a co-op you do not own the walls.

What are the benefits of living in a co-op building?

Price! Living in a co-op apartment is very cheap often a few hundred dollars cheaper a month compared to apartments of similar value. The reason corporations do this is to make sure there entire building is rented so they are able to pay back loans and mortgages without struggling to get cash.

So why doesn't everyone go for this co-op buildings if they are such great deals?

The corporation that owns the building is allowed to decide which tenants to accept in there buildings. They want extremely qualified if not over qualified tenants. They want as close to a guarantee that they will get the full term of the contract and the tenant wont leave.

To find a co-op apartment I suggest using a big brokerage. Co-ops will have there own broker, but will send there listings to brokers and because co-ops are not very well connected chances are these listings won't make there way to the little guys. I suggest Corcoran, Halstead or Citihabitats.

Get ready for interviews and tons of paperwork!

The Difficult Manhattan Landlord Review

2009-06-30T11:42:00.006-04:00

Solil Management

This company is one business within the larger company known as Sol Goldman Investments. As one of the top three largest private land owners in Manhattan, this company owns over 100 buildings and well over 4,000 apartment units on the island. Many of their properties contain 50% or more rent-stabilized units with extremely undervalued rents. Their properties are located in every neighborhood in Manhattan and are of every possible size or shape.

With there extremely undervalued rents there is a catch. Solil Management is notoriously known for having the worst tenant support network in all of Manhattan. If something goes wrong in your apartment even if you fight and cause mayhem nothing will be done by Solil and you end up having to pay for it out of pocket.

While Solil is open to having any person rent one of their apartments, they are often extremely strict with their requirements and would just rather work with a broker.

Beach Lane Management

Beach Lane Management has one of the largest portfolios of residential rentals in Manhattan. Specializing in midtown west and down to Chelsea (as well as other locations) they manage over 100 buildings.

There apartments have fees attached to them. The only way to rent one of there apartments is through a broker and they do not offer any incentives to the broker so the only way the broker can make money is by charging a fee. That being said, Beach Lane Management has some of the best apartments at great prices in Manhattan.

BLDG Management

This company is one of the Goldman family's real estate holding groups, this Management company is one of the most exclusive in the city. They work with only a select group of brokers and will not rent any of their apartments to tenants whom are not represented by one of their preferred group. Some of the city's best addresses, they own property all over the city. This company offers some of the best deals in Manhattan but you need to know the right broker and be willing to pay a hefty fee to rent one.

Pan Am Equities

Pan-Am Equities is one of the city's largest landlords with over 60 buildings in their portfolio. Nearly all of which are elevated buildings, well-kept, and well-located. This landlord will not deal with tenants directly under any circumstances. To rent an apartment in one of this landlord's buildings, you must go through one of their preferred brokers.

Good Luck trying to get in one of these apartments - contact information and buildings listings can be found by clicking that link and searching the company name in the search bar on the top of the web page.

Top Manhattan Residential Apartment Rental Landlords

2009-06-29T14:57:00.005-04:00

Listed in no particular order, I am going to list a few landlords that are known for fair pricing, great apartments, nice buildings and great service.

Keyah Enterprises - Available Listings and Building information

One of the Upper West Side's oldest and most established landlords. With an integrated owner, management, and brokerage office all in one, this landlord takes excellent care of all their rental buildings. Their portfolio started on the Upper West Side and is the most prominent there, however, they own buildings not only in other parts of Manhattan, but also other parts of the country. Their website is updated daily

Keyah is easy to work with and has nice apartments. They offer incentives such as month's free and their rents are normally fair.

Icon Realty Management - Available Listings and Building Information

Icon Realty Management recently required a substantial building portfolio, and has been renovated all their buildings and apartments. All apartments are newly renovated featuring: bleached-plank hardwood floors, recessed lighting, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, cherry wood cabinets, crown and baseboard moldings, marble bathrooms, along with premium Bosch washer/dryers.

Icon offers some great Upper East Side and West Village buildings. There are apartments have all been recently renovated. They offer 1 month free on there listings.

Abington Management - Available Listings and Building Information

One of the original NO-FEE landlords whom has really made their website a major asset to their portfolio, this family owned and operated landlord began over 50 years ago. With over 20+ large elevator buildings all over Manhattan this company is well-run, maintains their buildings well and closes deals quickly. Many of their best deals for renter's lie in their convertible apartments, but some buildings remain undervalued in terms of rents due to difficult access. Their website is updated multiple times per day.

Abington is a great starting point for renting in Manhattan. With such a large portfolio of apartments you can really get a gauge on the market. All of their listings are no fee and fairly priced - just make sure you are ready to put down some security if you don't have a guarantor or perfect credit.

JMK Realty - Available Listings and Building Information

Exclusive broker for dozens of very small downtown landlords. Concentrates on the downtown neighborhoods and has for 10+ years. This management company manages hundreds of buildings in downtown Manhattan. They are extremely easy to work with and have some extremely good deals. They focus on smaller walk up buildings that are a bit older but have lots of space. Some of there deals in the West Village cannot be matched. But, since this is a management company that works with an inhouse brokerage you might have to pay a fee.

Thats it for now, expect more information on management companies in the near future.

To Rent or Buy in New York City?

2009-06-26T12:07:00.003-04:00

One of the biggest decisions a person has to make each year is whether they want to rent their home our buy it. Before the recession emerged people were buying up property at high prices because banks were willing to give out large loans to regular people with bad credit and shaky job situations (that bit them on the ass).

There are a few things you have to understand about living. First off many people you will talk to will tell you renting is not a good move because at the end of your lease you have nothing in your hands. But, the truth is you did get something a year of living - if you ask me that's a pretty decent investment.

To break this down further lets create a list.

Positives of Buying a home:

Ownership
Investment - can make money selling the home if property value increases
After pay off loans free to live
Can mortgage against your house
No contracts, can always sell and move

Positives of Renting a home:

Money is not tied up long term
No loans
Repairs are not your concern
Less expenses
Get to move around
Generally cheaper year to year

That's all i got - But, something to take a look at this NY Times Rent or Buy calculator.

Good Luck.

Getting Approved for an Apartment.

2009-06-25T11:27:00.005-04:00

This entry will be dedicated to me explaining the imperfect system of getting approved by the owner of a building.

In general, landlords in New York City care about three things: guaranteed future streams of income, your credit history, and liquid net worth (operative words here being guaranteed and liquid.) In other words, if you can show that your steady and stable job guarantees you an income of more than 45 times the monthly rent, a FICO credit score of at least 680, and/or a liquid net worth of one to two times the annual rent – any landlord in Manhattan will likely accept your application. If you do not meet the above qualifications and are not sure if you’ll qualify, the best advice is to be prepared and have a guarantor lined up with paperwork in hand.

A guarantor is someone willing to be a co-signer on a lease with a person who is applying for an apartment. The reason you would need a guarantor is if, for whatever reason, you do not meet an owner’s qualifying criteria for an apartment. Guarantors are typically required to make 80-90 times the monthly rent, have excellent credit, and be financially stable.

A unique new program - The Insurent Lease Guaranty Program - can act as a guarantor for your apartment lease. This Program is accepted by many large and small landlords throughout the NYC metropolitan market. The Insurent Program primarily underwrites creditworthy college & professional graduates entering the workforce with jobs or job acceptance letters, non-U.S residents moving to the United States with no U.S. based credit history, high net worth individuals, relocating executives, self employed and retired individuals. Assuming you have good credit and your annual income is a minimum of 27.5 times the monthly rent (substantially lower than the 40-50 times of the monthly rent often required by landlords), Insurent can pre-qualify you in less than 2 hours after filling out the online application. After validation of your employment and identity as well as payment of the guaranty fee (typically 78% of one month's rent), the landlord will receive an Insurent Guaranty for your 1 year lease. Even if you have an individual co-signer/guarantor for your lease, many parents who could financially qualify as guarantors may opt to utilize the Insurent Program and pay the guaranty fee for their son or daughter to avoid subjecting themselves to the burdensome, time-consuming and invasive process of providing 2 years of tax returns, net worth statements, brokerage reports and bank statements typically required by landlords. With the Insurent Program, the renter only needs to give the landlord the first month's rent, and only 1 month of security upon signing the lease.

The reason owners are very strict about their requirements for getting approved is because they have to be. The laws regarding tenant-owner relationships favor the tenant greatly. If a tenant loses their job and can't afford to pay rent it takes the owner a very long and stressful process to evict the tenant. Since the owner does not want to lose rent and let a tenant live for free they make sure that the renter will be able to pay through the terms of the lease and if for any reason can't the guarantor would be required to pay.

Good Luck!
For apartment rental listings in Manhattan and NYC click here.

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Tips for Starting the Apartment Rental Hunt in NYC

2009-06-24T11:23:00.006-04:00

When is the best time to start looking for an apartment?

All owners operate differently, some will release availabilities 5 months in advance while others will not release their listings till the apartment becomes available. There are two reasons for this, sometimes owners will only release their listings to certain brokers before they make them public to all brokers and the public. Second, owners have to give current tenants time before they make a decision whether to renew their lease or move out.

For this reason i would suggest starting your apartment search in two phases.

The first phase being the research phase which should be done approximately 2 months before your ideal move-in date. Going on websites like Urban Sherpa No Fee Apartment Rentals and Craigslist will help you understand the value of an apartment. From here you can create a list and break it down into 2 categories - things you need and things you want. Some factors to consider are location, size of the apartment, elevator, doorman, renovations, outdoor space, are pets allowed, are you willing to pay a fee for the perfect apartment, and if i continued this list would go on forever.

Phase 2 should begin one month before your ideal move in date. At this point you need to be ready to pull the trigger and have employment information, bank statements, W2's and other financial information ready for credit checks. The nature of the market in NYC (especially Manhattan) is highly competitive and you can't let deals get away from you due to taking to long to submitting an application.

You should be in contact with your broker having them show you apartments that they think will work for you. Or be on UrbanSherpa contacting owners directly and scheduling appointments to see apartments.

It is always nice to have your living situation figured out well before your move in date, but always make informed decisions that you feel comfortable with. Brokers are known for being pushy and just wanting to close a deal as quick as possible.

A question you have to ask yourself is whether you want to save money and rent directly through the owner or use a broker to help you along. You will save thousands of dollars using a website such as www.urbansherpany.com but will also have to put in more time into this entire process. Using a broker can be convenient and easy.

Another thing to consider is that most owners and management companies start their leases on either the 1st or 15th of each month. It is also worth noting that owners like to have leases end during the summer, as that is the time when they can get the highest rent due to the increased volume of clients seeking apartments at that time.

What You Need to Know About Renting During the Summer

2009-06-23T11:17:00.005-04:00

Nearly 70% of the rental transactions that occur in Manhattan happen between April-October. During these months, there are far more available apartments and, simultaneously, far more apartment hunters. This causes the market to move significantly faster. If during the winter season (November thru March) an apartment was on the market for two weeks, during the summer the same apartment probably wouldn’t stay on the market for more than a week. Also during the summer season, there is a 10% increase in apartment prices.

If you take a look at this Chart you can see how once March comes around rental inventory is significantly higher.Urban Digs Graph

If you take a look at Craigslist you will just see how many apartment ads are posted each day in the Owner, No Fee and Fee sections of New York For Rent section.

For even more information on what to expect this summer take a look at Curbed Market Report. You can see that the demand for apartments has dropped since last year but demand for doorman apartments have dropped even more. Way too many luxury apartments were built over the past few decades and the market is now correcting itself as these buildings will lose significant amounts of money as they will have trouble renting their apartments at the price they want.

With all that being said, the best deals are still in walk up buildings. But, if you are in the border in terms of whether to go luxury or not, take a look at some luxury apartments and offer a bid - you might just get lucky.

Good Luck and do not get your hopes down.

How important is credit score when renting an apartment?

2009-06-22T12:41:00.001-04:00

A credit score is a key piece of information owners use when deciding whether or not they approve an applicant for an apartment. Knowing your credit score is important when applying for a new apartment. If you know you have bad credit, you should expect to do one of two things:

* Be prepared to pay more than the customary one month rent for a security deposit. In the worst cases, I have seen owners ask for an entire year’s rent upfront, although usually they will only require one or two month’s rent for extra security.
* Offer to pay a slightly higher rent for the available apartment to compensate its owner for the increased risk they are taking by renting the apartment to someone with bad credit.

There are two golden numbers when examining your credit. The first number is 680. If you have a credit score of 680 or higher, your credit is fair or better. With a score of 680, you can usually qualify for small loans with little or no penalty. You will generally be considered a low risk individual and should not have trouble renting an apartment. The second number is 720. If you have a credit score of 720 or above, you are considered an extremely low risk individual. When applying for a mortgage or other loans with this score, you will likely be able to receive the best interest rates available and should have no problem whatsoever renting an apartment.

What is a rent stabalized apartment?

2009-06-19T14:07:00.002-04:00

The laws concerning rent stabilization and rent controlled apartments can be quite complicated. To simplify the important information as much as possible, we believe you need to know the following:

If an apartment is rent stabilized, the rent can only be increased between three and five percent per year (depending on the year), unless one of the following occurs:

* The apartment is renovated. If a rent stabilized apartment is renovated, 1/40th of the total cost of renovation can be added to the apartment’s monthly rent.

(If the rent for an apartment is $1,000 and an owner spends $8,000 renovating the apartment, the owner can add $8,000/40 = $200 to the rent for a new total rent of $1,200.)
* If there is an MCI (major capitol improvement) to the building, the cost of this improvement can be added to the rent of every apartment located in the rent stabilized building.

(The formula for calculating the exact increase is quite complicated, but a basic example is as follows: the owner replaces the roof of a building with 100 apartments at a cost of $20,000. The owner can then increase the rent of each apartment by $20,000/100(apartments) = $200 (per apartment)/12(months) = $16.66 per month rent increase to each apartment in the building. Again, this is a very simplified version of the actual formula.)
If the owner of a building decides to inhabit a rent stabilized apartment themselves for a period of two years or more, when they leave the apartment will no longer be rent stabilized.

Fee vs. No Fee Explanation

2009-06-18T12:47:00.003-04:00

For starters one must understand that the overwhelming majority of apartments that are available at any given time in Manhattan are FEE apartments. What this means is that if you use a broker to find your new apartment, the broker must be compensated for their work. They must charge their client a fee; this fee is normally 15% of one year's rent (for a $2,500 apartment a 15% Fee would be $4,500). In most markets in the country, this fee does not exist, instead agents are paid by the apartment owner to find a qualified tenant; New York City is an anomaly in this sense.
Being a broker, I know that, yes, there are clients for whom it makes sense to pay a fee (due to time constraints, among other things), as well as agents who have worked diligently and responsibly for their clients and deserve a 15% fee. That being said, while working as a broker, I have often found apartments for my clients in 10 minuets for which they end up applying and renting. For this I am paid a 15% fee, totaling in the thousands of dollars. Is it fair to charge a client a rate of $3,000 an hour, if the end result is the client has a new apartment with which they are happy? That is for you to decide

There are two ways to go about avoiding paying a fee.

One way is for you, the potential tenant, to rent an apartment directly through an owner (as you will now be able to with Urban Sherpa ). The other is if an owner offers brokers an OP (owner payment) for an apartment, thereby compensating the broker so they do not need to charge the tenant.

An OP is normally equal to one months rent, or 8.33 % of a year’s rent. Again, the reason an OP can mean no fee to the tenant is because the broker is being compensated for their work by the owner, not by you.

The owner offering an OP to the broker allows the broker to advertise the apartment as "No Fee" but in reality the tenant doesn't necessarily get a better deal. The owner, losing a month of rent to the broker will increase the rent during the other months to compensate this loss.

To explain this better I will use 2 apartments for rent as an example. Apartment A and apartment B are in the same building with the same size, same view, same ammenities. The difference, apartment A is being advertised as a no fee apartment for $2,000 because the owner is paying an OP. While apartment B is being advertised as a fee apartment for $1,835. Over a 12 month lease both apartments will cost you $22,000 - no matter which you choose once factoring in the fee you have to pay a broker on apartment B.

With that said, the general public will be more interested in Apartment A because they do not have to pay the fee themselves.

Renting with Urban Sherpa you will avoid any fee to a broker as well as a fee the owner has to pay a broker. This can lead to free months or reduced rent prices.

Urban Sherpa's TEN STEPS to Finding Your No Fee Apartment Rental in New York City

2009-06-17T13:16:00.004-04:00

Urban Sherpa's TEN STEPS to Finding Your No Fee Apartment Rental:
A Guidebook to New York City Apartment Rentals

STEP ONE: MARKET KNOWLEDGE

Most people spend 3 to 6 weeks looking for their new apartment rental. Afterall, the average one bedroom walkup apartment in Manhattan in 2007 cost $2,548 per month. Meaning the average apartment hunter is on the verge of making a bare minimum $30,576 investment decision for the year, not including application fees, moving costs, or utilities which could easily total an additional $4,000 in expenses (based on $200 a month in utilities, and $2,000 in moving costs.) If handled properly, thoroughly and meticulously finding a no fee apartment can be extremely satisfying and rewarding as well as cost effective. Step one in any apartment search has to be learning a little bit about how the process takes place, how to find an apartment, and just being comfortable with the process in general. Doing research and learning about how people find apartments in New York City is part of making a great decision and finding that ideal New York City no fee apartment

STEP TWO: FIGURING OUT WHAT YOU WILL QUALIFY FOR

Most landlords in New York City (certainly in Manhattan anyways) will only accept tenants who earn an income of at least 40 times the monthly rent, which means an $80,000 annual salary for a $2,000 per month apartment.
Credit scores are equally as important to most landlords and management company's with FICO scores needing to be in the 700+ range to qualify for an apartment without a guarantor.

If you do not think you will qualify by yourself, don't worry often you can use a co-signer or guarantor to help qualify you. Some landlords and management company's will require guarantors no matter what for 20-something year olds. Others will require guarantors to earn an annual income of 80 times the monthly rent (or $160,000 for that same $2,000 per month apartment.) Other landlords still simply won't accept any guarantors.

While every landlord in New York has their own set of rules and policies, its important to use the above guidelines as a rule of thumb and have your "ducks in a row" so to speak once you start looking for an apartment. You never know when that "Holy Grail" of an apartment is going to come along and sometimes you have to move FAST to get the right apartment.

STEP THREE: WHAT YOU WANT/CAN GET FOR YOUR MONEY

Now, that you have a better understanding of what you can expect for financial requirements, the next step in your apartment search is deciding what exactly you want:
Price Range
Size or # of bedrooms and bathrooms (square footage)
Location or neighborhoods
Move-in date
Amenities (doorman, elevator, etc.)
Once you have done this, you are ready to begin your apartment search! Realize you should try and maintain flexibility. This is New York people! No one gets everything they want. So be realistic. Its good to have a "wish" list as well as a realistic list of needs, wants, and preferences when beginning your search. The more flexible you can be with all of your criteria the more likely you're going to be to find something exceptional and to find that amazing no fee apartment in the right location at the right price.

STEP FOUR: IRON OUT DETAILS ON YOUR CURRENT LEASE NOW!

If you're moving to New York for the first time this may not apply to you necessarily, but its important for obvious reasons to clear up current lease issues, before spending time and energy and finding a new one. Make sure you know what kind of notice you must give your current landlord. Make sure to notify your landlord and that you know what you will need to do to get that security deposit back. If you're moving out of a roommate situation and into your own place, iron out the details with your current roommates before looking for the new place. There's nothing worse than finding that perfect no fee apartment and then realizing you can't get out of your current lease.

STEP FIVE: FINDING AN APARTMENT

There are many no fee listing sites on the web, some offer listings for free others are subscription based. One’s that require some form of payment to access tend to be of the same quality as free listing sites. Putting a price on something tends to make people believe they are being provided with higher quality, but this isn’t the case! So don’t be fooled. Exclusive brokers are sometimes the only way to see or rent apartments in certain buildings, but for ALL the buildings and apartments in New York City where the landlords will directly with tenants go to Urban Sherpa to start and end your apartment search.

You can access comprehensive real-time listings free of charge at UrbanSherpaNY.com. Owner and super contact information, application information and the histories of buildings and landlords are all provided entirely for free. Sample search using Urban Sherpa:
1) Log in
2) Scroll over the map and pick the neighborhood(s) you are interested in, the amount of bedrooms and your price range (feel free to leave any of these blank for increased search results), than click ‘Search’.
3) Your ‘Listing Results’ will appear, scroll until you find an apartment of interest. You will be able to see the apartments' exact address, # of beds & baths, move-in date, and photo, without having to click through to the apartment's listing profile.
4) Once, you find an apartment you are interested in click through to the apartments listing profile. Here you will find:
-Owner, landlord, management company, building management and super contact information
-Application Information
-Building Information
-Landlord Information
-Apartment History
-Additional Photos
-Apartment Details
-And much much more!

When you find an apartment you are interested in going to see, prior to viewing the apartment, you should review the owner's requirements to make sure you can QUALIFY for the apartment. If you do not think you will qualify by yourself, don't worry often you can use a co-signer or guarantor to help qualify you. Next is contacting the landlord and setting up a viewing appointment.

STEP SIX: BE ORGANIZED

Staying organized in an apartment search is important for so many reasons. When you go to view apartments, write down the exact addresses; take notes; ask questions. You never know when it will be convenient to reference this information. Remember, apartment searches often take many weeks. Just when you think your search may be over - you may have to go back to the drawing board. As a result, staying organized and being clear with yourself about your needs (or with roommates about preferences and wishes) is of the utmost importance.

STEP SEVEN: CONTACTING THE LANDLORD

After finding a listing of interest, CALL the number provided under "Showing Info" for the owner or super and SCHEDULE a time to view the apartment. The best time to see as many apartments as possible, unfortunately, is Monday thru Friday 9am - 5pm. Many buildings do not have doormen or on-site leasing staff, and without either of those options you'll need to rely on the supers, building managers, and other landlord representatives to view apartments. Like most apartment hunters, supers generally work weekdays with traditional hours. Sometimes there will be access at other times, either by open house or other accommodations made by the owner. However, taking time out of the week will definitely allow you to maximize the time you do have to view apartments.

After viewing the apartment, if you are interested in renting the unit, you should IMMEDIATELY CALL THE OWNER to get an application or download one from Urban Sherpa and compile all the necessary paperwork listed on Urban Sherpa as quickly as possible. Some owners will take the apartment off the market with only a completed application and application fee, so inquire as to whether this is the case for the apartment in which you are interested.

STEP EIGHT: APPLICATION PROCESSES

Problem: every application process is different. Solution: be VERY careful when going over application specifics. There are some general rules of thumb about all rental applications for landlords in Manhattan and New York City; the following is a short list of relative certainties:

1) Application fee: generally at least $50 per applicant sometimes as much as $150-$300 per applicant.
2) Necessary paperwork: completed application, letter of employment, most recent pay stub, most recent bank statement, last year’s tax returns or W-2’s, plus credit check. This is usually the minimum required paperwork, but usually enough to get the ball rolling when time is of the essence.
3) ALL APPLICATIONS ARE TIME SENSITIVE. Every landlord is different; some work on a first-come-first-served basis. Other landlords work on a ‘best’ applicant process. No matter the case, the application process cannot begin until the landlord has all the necessary paperwork.

There are two things to keep in mind always about the application process besides the generalities above: first, the faster the better. Apartments in Manhattan, especially in the summer, can be rented in a matter of hours – literally. Getting paperwork together, getting cash for the application process, talking to roommates, or guarantors, takes time. The faster this can all be accomplished, the better. Second, every application process in Manhattan is different. By consulting a resource, which lists what the landlord expects and looks for in an application (i.e. Urban Sherpa Landlord profiles), you can help give yourself the best possible chance of getting the apartment you want.

After SUBMITTING an application, make sure to call the owner daily (unless advised by said owner to do differently) to keep track of the status of your application. If your application is APPROVED, call the owner and find out to whom checks are to be made out and schedule a time for the lease signing.

STEP NINE: LEASE SIGNING

Just like the application process, lease signings are different for every company or landlord as well. They all have different policies, and these policies are far too different to enumerate here. The most important thing at lease signings though, is to make sure that there are no surprises. Lease signings can be a very stressful moment for you. After all, we are talking about legal documentation that verifies on average a $30,000+ investment. A lease signing is the culmination of weeks of work, stress, sweat, and big changes, in addition to at least $30,000, maybe as much or more than $100,000. As an apartment hunter you have two distinct jobs at a lease signing; they’re easy, but very important. First, and most importantly, is making sure no one is surprised (including you). All "deal-breaking" issues need to have been resolved prior to signing a lease (pets, required money, guarantors.) Your perfect apartment is at its most fragile point at the lease signing. Everyone is combing through every single little detail, and if anything comes up that should’ve been dealt with before, guess who’s at fault? YOU! Second, and almost as important, is the landlord will have very specific directions on how he/she would like the money, what time the lease signing is to be at, what other paperwork (ie. photo ID), or who needs to be there exactly. These directions need to be followed explicitly, and precisely.

STEP TEN: TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT URBANSHERPANY.COM

URBAN SHERPA WAS CREATED FOR FREE, for the people of New York City, to make the apartment rental search process easier, faster, and more efficient. So tell your friends about this new free resource and keep the free information FREE and available to the public. Click here to visit www.UrbanSherpaNY.com RIGHT NOW!!!

Purpose Of This Blog

2009-06-16T16:26:00.002-04:00

I am the director of Urban Sherpa NY a website around since November 2007 that was created to give the public a database of no fee rentals that was updated daily. Almost two years later Urban Sherpa NY has become a staple in the Manhattan rental market with over 4,000 available no fee apartment rentals in just Manhattan and over 100,000 pages viewed each month.

I am creating this blog to do two things. Firstly, this blog will promote my website's no fee apartment database and some of the services we provide as well as updates and new features. Secondly, it will be an information source to the public. Being a liscenced real estate broker as well as being in the industry for almost a decade - I have a wealth of knowledge that i can share to the public.

I hope you guys enjoy the time I will put into this blog as well as some of the tips and guides i post about the Manhattan rental market.

--Ben