Apartment Hunting in New York

Apartment hunting in New York is really only fun if you have lots of money to spend. Otherwise, you end up living in a dump. Well, unless you room with half a dozen other people in a high rise loft or something along those lines. So you can guess that Philip and I have had a rough time finding an apartment.

Some NYC real estate offices have
cool waiting areas!

Our sublease is up on July 30, so for the past month, month and a half, Philip and I have made apartment hunting a full-time job. Unless we’re eating or sleeping, we’re on Craigslist, real estate websites, or makeshift apartment search websites or we’re visiting places from everywhere in Riverdale in the Bronx (WAY up north in NYC) to Astoria in Queens.

What makes it even tougher than our financial situation in general is that NYC has super strict renting policies. Basically, if you’ve ever missed a rent payment, if you’ve ever been to court with a landlord (regardless of circumstances), if you don’t make 40x monthly rent, etc. it’s virtually impossible to rent an apartment. 

Office desk, office chair, and visitor chair

Then there’s the broker’s fee. Arizona real estate agents, read carefully: If you want to provide shoddy services to your clients (not that I suggest it) while making bank, move to NYC! The real estate agents we’ve worked with here are the worst we’ve ever worked with, and many of them make 15-18% of the yearly rent for each rental transaction (as opposed to the 6% you make!). It’s a crazy market here in the City.

Anyway, our search is over. We now have a place to stay for the month of August. I’m sorry, did I write “place”? I meant “places.” Yes, we’re playing the New York game of live-where-you-can-until-you-find-the-perfect-place-for-you! As soon as our lease is up, we’re moving into a shared apartment for a week and a half before finishing out the month in a beautiful shared apartment on Roosevelt Island. Wanna know how beautiful? Check out these views from the apartment:

Pics above and below: East River and Manhattan Skyline

Okay, so I know my earlier pics of the office furniture didn't really have to do with our apartment search, but it kind of did. We talked to and visited so many real estate agents and offices that when I saw that particular office, I had to take pictures and share. It was, by far, the trendiest office space I have ever seen in person (as opposed to magazine pictures, TV shows, movies, etc.).

By the way, remember that I said Philip and I found a place to stay for the month of August. Wish us luck on our next search!

The Bittersweet Arrival

Me and Philip at Sky Harbor with our many bags.

We arrived safely at JFK this morning. With the number of bags we had (4 check-in suitcases and 5 carry-ons), we were in desperate need of a van taxi...they’re not as rampant as taxi cars and SUVs, so we were concerned about running into this challenge immediately upon arriving in New York after a redeye. 

But it is New York, and we need not have worried. Besides, it just so happened that when it was our turn for a taxi, a van pulled up.

The drive to our new apartment seemed long. And short. I slept through the entire hour-long drive, so I didn’t get to enjoy my first journey to my first New York home.

Our apartment is a cute studio, about 300 sq. ft. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that 300 sq. ft. is not as small, cramped, and claustrophobic as I had feared. It is a furnished apartment with an 8-foot tall, double-wide maple bookshelf immediately to the right of the door. Across the room is a dark brown square kitchen table for two pushed against the wall and small backless chairs with leather seats. On one side of the table is a medium-sized fridge, sink, and small stove; on the other side is a full-sized bed and a black desk with black chair.

It sounds like a lot of furniture, but it fits perfectly in our apartment.

I didn’t care that I slept through my drive home. I didn’t care that the apartment was small (however cute). What I cared about was that I had an apartment to drive to, an apartment where I could crash before my job interview. Yes, a job interview on the same day I moved across the country. It was an ambitious decision, but I was excited about the job and the interview and simply wanted to get it done.

After the job interview, which was at the King’s College in the Empire State Building, I ran to meet Philip at the Starbucks on the first floor so that he was the first person to know that I was offered a job!

I’m excited to begin my new life in the Big Apple.

The Bittersweet Departure

It’s been a bittersweet day. Moving days always are, though, aren’t they?

It’s 11:15 pm on Wednesday night in Phoenix, and Philip and I are waiting to board our plane to New York. For months, we’ve been planning for this very night, but now that it’s here, it seems surreal. 

All day, I’ve been packing and saying my goodbyes. This morning, I went to work at Grand Canyon University for the last time. Even the atmosphere in the office was bittersweet. It was convocation day, so our students were leaving us, and everyone, not just me, had to pack up all their belongings because the University would be demolishing the building over the summer. 

I had hoped packing my office would give me some sense of closure, but I didn’t find closure today - perhaps because everyone was packing.

It’s 11:30 pm now, and our plane is supposed to depart in 10 minutes. But I don’t think that’s going to happen. Everyone is still sitting in their seats, waiting patiently to board. Oh, wait! They just called for everyone who paid extra money for extra leg room.

I’ll finish writing about my day later...perhaps after I get settled into my new apartment tomorrow morning.