HOUSING RESOURCES
Check out these resources to browse for potential living options. Make sure to join our Google Group to see places available with fellow church members. You can join by emailing a request to the address below:
nycldshousing@googlegroups.com
Young Men Christian Association (YMCA)Manhattan has three YMCAs and all offer accommodations for both men and women. All rooms rent on a daily basis. Call the central booking at 212-308-2899 to make a reservation. Rates range approximately $1,700 – 2000 per month. Rates can vary if you book direct for a specific “Y” so we advise you call the central booking office. Contact: Central Booking Office 212-308-2899
Weekly rates are the norm and may include 2 meals a day in the price. They are often at full occupancy and most require a personal interview. You should, therefore, make arrangements for a room well in advance.McBurney YMCA: 206 W. 24th St., NY, NY 10011; 212-741-9226
Vanderbilt YMCA: 224 E. 47th St. NY, NY 10017; 212-756-9600.
West Side YMCA: 5 W. 63rd St. NY, NY 10023; 212-787-4400
92nd Street Young Men-Young Women Hebrew Association (YM-YWHA)
For men and women ages 18 and older. 400 rooms by application only. Rates: Contact: 1395 Lexington Avenue, NY, NY 10128; 212-427-6000; https://www.92y.org/residence/rates. This is where BYU-Provo house students for their course in NYCKatherine House (Ladies Christian Union):Women only
82 rooms, 3 month minimum stay for women 18-25 with an income of less than $25,000 per year. May only accept students going to school in NYC. Contact: 244 5th Avenue, Suite 200. 212-627-4555.Markle Residence (Salvation Army) Women only
4 week minimum stay. Rates: Your room fee, which includes meals and other amenities, will range from $1,430 to $1,995 per person per month for private room and bath, includes 2 meals per day. Contact: 123 W. 13th St. NY, NY 10014; Phone: 212-242-2400, Toll-Free 877 317 6911.Mary’s Residence (Daughters of the Divine Charity) Women only Room Rates Single Room $266 per week/$532 biweekly + $286 deposit Room with Private Bath $301 per week /Double Room with Private Bath $329 per week 3 week minimum stay, no meals. Contact: Lisa J. Rodriguez, Director of Admissions, Monday to Friday from 10:00AM to 4:00PM, at (212) 249-6850 or stmarysres72@aol.com. 225 E. 72nd St. NY, NY 10021
Webster Apartments (women only)
Attractive establishment which features gardens, a library and maid service and has 370 rooms. An interview is required of all applicants in the area; out-of-towners write directly for an application. You must provide proof of enrollment in a school, a letter of proof of internship, or four consecutive pay-stubs with application. Call well in advance. Contact: 419 W. 34th Street (between 9th and 10th Avenues) NY, NY 10001; 212-967-9000. websterapartments.orgHarrington Apartments https://www.nyharrington.com/summer-internship.php about $5,000 for the summer
The New School https://www.newschool.edu/housing/summer/ Approximately $370 per week
Columbia University (Summer Only) Not available this year
Available to any student with current ID with paying or non-paying internship. Rates: Rates are $190 per week depending on amenities (1 month minimum payable in advance). Contact: c/o Conference Housing Office 116 Wallach Hall, Columbia University, NYC, NY 10027. Tel 212-854-2946.International House (Near Columbia University; summer only, co-ed)
Dorm rooms and suites available to students, interns, and visitors from late May to mid-August on a first come, first serve basis. (over 700 rooms available). May be available during school year as well-call for info. Rates: Rates are $1200-1700 per month depending on amenities. For short stays, $45 per night. Contact: 500 Riverside Drive at 123rd Street, NY, NY 10027; 212-316-8400.New York University (Summer Only)
Open to students age 17 or older from early May through August. Rates: Rates are $155 per week for double or triple room w/o air-conditioning, to $222-434 per week for air-conditioned single room with meals included. Halls are co-ed, rooms and suites are single sex. Apply early. Contact: NYU Office of Summer Housing, 14A Washington Place, NY, NY 10003; Tel: (212) 998-4600
Email: housing@nyu.edunyu.edu/housing/summer.Military Servicepeople’s Residences
The Navy Lodge is a hotel for military personnel. Any active-duty serviceperson, retiree, or honorable discharge (with a military ID). These same people can also book a room for relatives at the same rate. Active-duty personnel can reserve 60 days in advance; all others can book 30 days in advance. It is located on Staten Island at Fort Wadsworth. Contact: 800-628-9466 718 442 0413 navylodge.newyork@nexweb.org.NYCIntern.org
NYCdorms.com
StudentHousingAssociates.com
1760third.com
APARTMENT TYPES AND SIZES
You are probably familiar with the meaning of such terms as “one-bedroom” and two-bedroom” when talking about apartments. The following are some other important terms you’ll hear when looking at apartments.
Studio
An apartment with a combined living and sleeping area. It is usually one room with a small kitchen in a corner. People often use a futon couch that can be converted for sitting and sleeping.
Alcove Studio
A modified version of a studio apartment. In these there is a “room” off the main room which can be used for sleeping, but it will not have a proper door or doorway.
Loft
A former commercial or industrial building that has been converted into apartments. These are generally large, open spaces with high ceilings.
Brownstone or Townhouse
One-family homes built before the turn of the century and into the early 1900s with four or five stories. Most of these have been turned into multiple-unit apartment buildings. These buildings will not have a doorman and most likely no elevator.
Walk-up
An apartment in a building—often a brownstone or townhouse—that has no elevator.
Prewar and Post War
Buildings built before and after World Ward II (usually 1940s—1970s).
WHERE TO LIVE?
Every neighborhood in the City is incredibly diverse. Just about every kind of person imaginable lives in just about every neighborhood. However, there are some greater percentages of specific groups in most areas. Apartments in the City can be bigger or smaller, more or less desirable, cheaper or more expensive based simply on the somewhat subtle dividing lines of neighborhoods. The confines of a neighborhood can also change dramatically in just a few feet. Fellow Latter-day Saints live in just about every neighborhood.
New York City is made up of five boroughs: Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. There are also the suburban areas in nearby northern New Jersey (cities of Hoboken and Jersey City), Long Island, Westchester, and southern Connecticut. The following information deals primarily with New York City. The areas described below are divided generally along Church ward/branch boundaries.
Inwood/Washington Heights
At the northern tip of Manhattan, on the island’s highest ground, are two peaceful, mostly working-class neighborhoods that offer less-expensive Manhattan housing values for those willing to travel a bit. It also boasts some spectacular views of the waterways that surround the area. The area includes Fort Tryon Park, from 192nd to Dyckman Streets and Broadway to Riverside Drive; Yeshiva University, 186th Street to Amsterdam Avenue; Baker Field, Columbia University’s football stadium, 218th Street between Broadway and Seaman Avenue; and the George Washington Bridge at 178th Street.
Harlem
A thriving cultural center during the ‘20s and ‘30s, Harlem is a neighborhood on the up and up. New construction of shopping centers and suburban-styled grocery stores has been going on for several years. Some of its most famous cultural favorites like the Apollo Theater and Minton’s Playhouse have gotten facelifts. And many of the beautiful, but aging brownstones (row-houses) that line the streets are being spruced up by residents and landlords. Rents are still relatively less-expensive, but some areas are less-safe than others. The Harlem YSA ward is located here.
Upper West Side
Since 1970 this part of town has been one of the world’s great urban reclamation stories. The Lincoln Square area (64th and Columbus Avenue) is the southernmost part of the Upper West Side, and is home to New York’s center of the performing arts. The more traditional residential area, from the high 60s to the 90s has some new construction, but most are glorious old buildings along Central Park West and Riverside Drive, with many attractive brownstones in the middle. This area has rapidly become one of the more expensive places to live. The northern part of this neighborhood extends to Columbia University and the Morningside Heights area. The Upper West Side is home to the Reservoir, The Lake, Strawberry Fields, Sheep Meadow, and Tavern on the Green sections of Central Park. Places of note to visit include Beacon Theater (75th Street), the New-York Historical Society (77th Street), and the American Museum of Natural History (79th Street). The Lincoln Center YSA Ward is located here.
Upper East Side
This neighborhood houses some of the wealthiest people in America. It is also home for a growing number of young professionals who live in the numerous high-rise apartment buildings. It is an area bordered by East 60th Street on the south and 110th Street on the north, east of Central Park and includes Roosevelt Island. Despite its reputation as an expensive area, there are still housing bargains to be found. The Upper East Side offers some of Manhattan’s finest cultural jewels: Conservatory Garden, Metropolitan Museum, and Zoo in Central Park; Museum Mile along 5th Avenue (Metropolitan Museum of Art, Guggenheim, Copper-Hewitt, Jewish Museum, International Center of Photography, and others); Gracie Mansion (Mayor’s residence); 92nd Street Y (major Jewish cultural and community center); and Islamic Center of New York (the City’s first major mosque).
The Upper East Side also has a chapel—the Church’s newest in the City, dedicated in 2006. It is a five-story building located at 217 East 87th Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues. It is a beautiful new building and the YSA Manhatten East Ward.
Midtown
This “midsection” of Manhattan is bordered by 59th Street on the north and 14th Street on the south. On the west side are the communities of Clinton (formerly known as Hell’s Kitchen) and Chelsea. On the east side are Turtle Bay, Murray Hill, and Gramercy.
Chelsea and Clinton have many attractive walk-up buildings and brownstones. An array of new stores has opened up along Sixth Avenue with restaurants and shops now lining Seventh and Eighth Avenue. Chelsea Piers athletic and recreational complex provides a facility unlike any other in the world. As a rapidly up and coming neighborhood, housing has been increasingly expensive on the west side. The Broadway Theater District, Flower District, Avenue of the Americas from 27th to 30th Streets, Javits Center (New York’s largest convention center), 34th Street between 11th and 12th Avenues, Port Authority (the main bus terminal), and the Intrepid Air and Space Museum (a beautifully preserved WW2 aircraft carrier) are all on the west side of Midtown.
On the east side of midtown there is a mixed bag of well-defined mostly brownstone and townhouse neighborhoods, although there are several large apartment complexes, like Tudor City, Peter Cooper Village, and Stuyvesant Town. The Gramercy area is centered around a private park open only to residents in the buildings in the neighborhood. In this part of town are Union Square Park, between 14th and 17th Streets and 4th and 3rd Avenues, Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace, 28 East 20th Street, and the Pierpont Morgan Library (America’s finest collection of Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts), 36th Street at Park Avenue.
Lower Manhattan
Portions of Lower Manhattan are some of the most sought after and expensive neighborhoods in the City. The northern section of Lower Manhattan is called Greenwich Village (sometimes also called West Village and East Village) and is bordered by 14th Street on the north and Houston Street on the south. The center of the neighborhood is New York University. The numbered streets are quite residential with tree-lined rows of brownstones and townhouses. There are also many older apartment buildings. Greenwich Village is home to Washington Square Park, 4th Street and Waverly Place, the largest public space downtown. The southern section of Lower Manhattan includes SoHo (South of Houston Street), TriBeCa, Chinatown, Lower East Side, Financial District, and Battery Park City. SoHo is home to the greatest concentration of galleries in the City—an artist’s paradise. The Lower East Side has more ethnic character than most neighborhoods and may still be a housing bargain. TriBeCa (an acronym for Triangle below Canal Street) is gradually changing from a place of warehouses and small factories to a place of residential apartments. The Financial District (Wall Street), once mostly a place where bankers and traders spent most of their work hours, now has many new high-rise apartment complexes and emerging neighborhood services. Battery Park City is a ninety-two-acre site adjacent to the World Financial Center and World Trade Center complexes. It is a carefully planned community with apartment complexes, many private amenities (such as a free bus service), a 1.2 mile esplanade, and a beautiful marina.
SIGNING A LEASE
Fees
Generally, the fees you may be asked to pay for securing an apartment are legal. However, be careful not to be taken in by the occasional unscrupulous operator:
A real estate broker can charge a broker’s fee for finding you an apartment. The amount of this fee is not set by law. In order to charge the fee the broker MUST actually find you an apartment. Typically, brokers will state that they charge 15% of the yearly rent. This charge is negotiable between you and the broker. When dealing with a broker though, do not ask early on if they are willing to negotiate lower, this will result in less service. If you are not willing to pay a broker fee, ask to be shown apartments that are “no fee” and “low fee.”
An apartment referral service can charge a fee for referring apartments to you. However, the fee must be refunded (minus a $15 charge) if you don’t find an apartment.
Neither a managing agent nor the owner of a rental building can ask you for a fee in order to rent an apartment. Such a demand is “key money” and is illegal. You can report the managing agent/owner to the NYS Attorney General’s Office if you have some solid evidence. It is doubtful whether a verbal demand would be sufficient to get the AG’s office to investigate unless you have corroborating witnesses.
Finally, the owner/managing agent can charge an application fee. Typically, this fee is for checking your references, your credit rating, etc. The fee must bear a reasonable relationship to the cost of doing these things. While a fee of $150 may be reasonable, a fee of $1500 is more likely to be considered key money.
No Fee
The Landlord is paying the listing broker’s fee.
Low Fee
The Landlord is paying a portion of the listing broker’s fee. The fee to the lessee is then typically one month’s rent or lower.
Broker Fee
Brokers charge 15% of yearly rent. This fee is negotiable, sometimes they can convince the Landlord to pay a portion of the fee if they feel that you will be an exceptional tenant.
Leases
A lease is particularly important for unregulated tenants Without a lease, unregulated tenancies may be terminated on as little as 30 days notice at the owner’s sole discretion.
Security Deposits
Virtually all leases require tenants to give their landlords a security deposit. The security deposit is usually one month’s rent, and cannot be more than one month’s rent in rent-stabilized housing units. The landlord must return your security deposit, less any lawful deduction, at the end of the lease or within a reasonable time thereafter. A landlord may use the security deposit: (a) as reimbursement for the reasonable cost of repairs beyond normal wear and tear, if the apartment is damaged; or (b) as reimbursement for any unpaid rent.
Landlords, regardless of the number of units in the building must treat the deposits as trust funds belonging to their tenants and they may not CO-mingle deposits with their own money. Landlords of buildings with six or more apartments must put all security deposits in New York bank accounts earning interest at the prevailing rate. You must be informed in writing of the bank’s name and address and the amount of the deposit. Landlords are entitled to annual administrative expenses of 1% of the deposit. All other interest earned on the deposits belongs to you. You must be given the option of having this interest paid out annually, applied to rent, or paid at the end of the lease term. If the building has fewer than six apartments, a landlord who voluntarily places the security deposits in an interest bearing account must also follow these rules.
Sharing an Apartment
Since rent in the City is expensive many people consider sharing an apartment. Some people make good roommates, others do not. For some the years they lived with a roommate were the best times of their lives, but for others they were a nightmare. And though you cannot completely control the situation, you can take steps to increase your success.
Typically, the number one complaint of people with roommates is lack of privacy. Other issues include lifestyle incompatibility (for example, a night owl musician living with a nine-to-fiver) and financial entanglements (what if a roommate moves out on a moment’s notice). Typically, only one of you will have the lease—which means that that person holds all the power, responsibilities, and rights.
The following are some factors to consider when deciding on a roommate:
Get to know your potential roommate. The more you know in advance, the better off you’ll be. Don’t be afraid to pry. If you are going to be roommates, you’ll learn about each other’s quirks sooner or later. The bishop or branch president you will be moving into may also be helpful in this process.
Establish a clearly defined legal relationship. One person will likely hold the lease and therefore the right and responsibility to the apartment. That person should pay more rent or have the smaller room, if that’s how you choose to handle this. Put your agreements in writing. For example, what happens if one of you moves out or is late with the rent or other bills.
Define the day-to-day living relationship. Who will be responsible cleaning the apartment? How will the refrigerator, air conditioning, washer/dryer, television, and other shared appliances and dishes be used? Do you want to split the groceries? What about the phone and electric bills? What will be the policy on houseguests, music, and noise? When will the rent be due?
The more roommates you have, the more the issues will multiply.
If a problem arise, speak up! Do not let issues fester until they become much bigger than they have to be. Let your feelings be known right away.