WFCN – One of the priciest property markets in the country right now is found in Manhattan, if not the most. It’s not easy to find an apartment there for $1,000 a month or less, but it’s not impossible to locate a property at that price point that’s truly roomy and comfortable—that is, if you happen to get extremely, extremely lucky as Alissa Moulster did.
Manhattanite Alissa made an unbelievable real estate move when she was able to find an amazing, rent-stabilized apartment in the city for just $800 a month. Whatever you had in mind for the appearance of a $800-per-month Manhattan flat, I guarantee it wasn’t this:
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When Alissa, found these adorable digs, it was obvious that the real estate gods were grinning down on her. Her new Manhattan apartment included two walk-in closets, a nice French-door bedroom, a cute bathroom with faux-marble flooring, and an enormous living and dining area!
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The kitchen was extremely small, with very little counter space, but Alissa claimed it was functional and met all her needs. These kinds of apartments in Manhattan can fetch several thousand dollars a month, but because of rent stabilization, Alissa’s rent is only $814 per month!
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People were obviously taken aback by Alissa’s incredible good fortune. People didn’t even believe the micro-kitchen was that big of a problem when everything was taken into account!
“You could save THOUSANDS on rent even if you ordered takeaway for every meal of the day. The kitchen is irrelevant,” exclaimed nolapeachtee, a TikTok user.
Briyanna said, “Never been more jealous in my life.”riah. Similar… and I’m not even a NYC resident!
Acquiring a Rent-Stabilized Gem from the Unfinished
Thankfully, Alissa revealed her insider tips for locating affordable, rent-stabilized apartments to New Yorkers searching for more affordable housing. She used her expertise as a former registered real estate agent in the city, although she admitted that a lot of it still comes down to chance.
“Every single building in Manhattan, I’m pretty sure, is legally required to have one rent-stabilized unit for every, like, six apartments they have in their building,” Alissa said in a follow-up TikTok Actually, it’s a little more nuanced than that.
The NYS Homes and Community Renewal agency states that rent stabilization primarily covers apartments constructed between 1947 and 1974, as well as flats exempt from rent control and structures eligible for specific tax breaks. However, that doesn’t make the remainder of Alissa’s advise invalid.
Although Alissa advises using a reliable broker to increase your chances, she also believes that anyone can do it on their own if they are prepared to put in the necessary time and effort, conduct their own research, and get in touch with brokers that have rent-stabilized apartments.
However, Alissa advises against wasting your time searching on rental websites because rent-stabilized apartments are snapped up so quickly that agents don’t even bother to list them. Alternatively, Alissa suggests subscribing to email blasts from agencies and brokers, who can provide lists of all their upcoming positions up to a year in advance.
But even if you qualify, are aware of the signals, and have all your paperwork together, Alissa makes it apparent that you may need to take a significant risk.
“You should probably apply for it sight unseen, because there’s going to be, I’m not kidding, probably 5,000 applicants on a rent-stabilized apartment,” says Alissa. “And they just proceed in order the majority of the time… You genuinely have no time to consider it.”
Although it certainly helps to have a little luck on your side, people like Alissa show that it’s not impossible to locate a great, affordable apartment in New York City. Hey, nobody ever said it was easy!