Live Comfortably- without Breaking Your Bank
When I get a twinge of syntax-block, I stare out at the grey roofs with black, green, or grey doors south of the 17th floor office I’m writing from. The only grey rectangle that holds up a human right now is the one three blocks south that held him/her up yesterday as well. Why is this man/woman in a tan jacket and black pants and shoes lounging under the sky while nobody else is? While you ponder that question I’m going to go on and on about myself – surprise, I’m sure!
Technically talking about myself right now is talking about you, though. I can count with my left hand the number of students I’ve met who commute from their parents homes, so chances are you either dorm or independently found yourself an abode off campus – me, the latter. I enjoyed my incoming year in NYU’s Third North well enough, but campus costs and even a highly disturbing moral issue prompted me to look elsewhere in Manhattan real estate for a living space.
NYU dormitory options for second to fourth year range from $9,212-$19,808 for the school year, including winter and spring recesses. Most of us are in class give-or-take four months in the fall and four in the spring, so a sophomore could potentially pay almost 20,000 big ones for about eight months if they want a single (own kitchen and bathroom). That divides out to $2,500 each month. My friend Amber pays $2,000 a month for her own studio, five blocks from school, with a south-facing skyline view, a doorman in her building, and no R.A. to answer to when her 21-year-old peers drink some beers. And she didn’t even pay a notoriously deal-savvy Manhattan broker to find her place. So honestly, the dorms are probably overcharging you by a landslide anywhere on the island, and definitely are if you go to NYU and don’t qualify for low cost housing.
So a few strategies are to search craigslist.org for shares, to check out an apartment building’s listings in person, or to know sombody who has a room available and like the person enough to live with them. If you’re lucky enough, a few of your friends may even decide to move into a 2-4 bedroom place together (this will save you all money because the utilities will be one bill and each person’s rent usually decreases with the more bedrooms the place has).
Personally, I went the craiglist route. I’ve been living in the East Village (not in Alphabet City east of Tompkins Square Park, but actually in the middle of the cute, historic village laiden with sweet restaurants, vintage shops and bars) for about 9 months.. and I even moved out for the summer and back in. We have a marble kitchen and bathroom, large living room with an exposed brick wall, jacuzzi tub, and roof deck. My bedroom is small but I pay less than $1,500 per month + utilities (electric and internet). Steal! The idea I’m trying to pass on is that you can find something affordable on your on. Step up and defeat the dorm-money-machine and you will personally and professionally grow from it. You will learn about New York real estate and brokers, even if you never use one. If you plan on making your career in this city, the quirks and issues you’ll realize by renting will be knowledge you learn now that you won’t have to struggle with once you’re a recent grad, trying to find footing in the harsh New York job market! Just sayin’.
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