Where are you guys living in NY?
Associate in growth equity here moving from SF to NY soon. Used to live with friends but thinking about living on my own now.
The market for a 1 bedroom seems pretty steep at 5k for any “nice”/“luxury” apartment and even more when looking at nicer areas on the west. Where do you guys like living?
I’m a single guy, don’t need to live anywhere buzzing, preferably Manhattan, a “luxury” apartment setup, and ideally something <5k. Are my expectations unrealistic? Might think about trade offs then but am not familiar enough with NY yet to know what I know / don’t know.
(Ignore the job title)
Kind of depends on where your office is and a combination of where you think you'll spend your time. One think to think about, in my opinion Manhattan is one of the more expensive places to have a luxury/full amenity building. Probably comparable to SF. If you want/need the gym in building, pool, rooftop, etc then go for it, but it's going to cost you more than most other cities. Might be worth giving some thought as to if you really want/need all of that stuff. It'll just give you more optionality to do without it.
With that said, I think you could find something in the ~4k range for a luxury one bed, it probably won't be the nicest luxury apartment or the most desirable in terms of location, but I'd think that Hudson Yards, Hells Kitchen, etc would have those types of places. In fact, I know it does, I was just looking for a place in NYC. I guess being systematic and quickly going top to bottom in Manhattan.
Upper West - Not a bad place to look, not a ton of amenity buildings, but some people love the upper west side, I'm kind of meh on it, but that's just me personally.
Hells Kitchen - You can probably find what you're looking for here, kind of quiet and dead, not a great neighborhood, but if you want to be close to your office (assuming you're in Midtown) and want an affordable luxury building, this is probably a top spot to look at. Just be mindful of how far towards the water you get, it starts to become a long walk to get anywhere if you're not careful on location
Hudson Yards - Similar to above, popular amongst bankers, a little better than Hells Kitchen to me, btu kind of same vibe of nice buildings, a little removed from the city. I'd look here too if I were you.
Chelsea - Dope, but will be too expensive for you.
West Village - Same as Chelsea and no amenity buildings, or none you can afford.
Tribeca - Love the neighborhood, will be too expensive for you.
Battery Park - Not a bad option, pretty far down in the city and not a ton of culture to the neighborhood, but you can find older amenity buildings for a decent price and there's stuff down and around there.
Fidi - Kind of like SOMA in SF, you'll find decently priced amenity buildings, but it's kind of dead after hours and on weekends.
Lower East/East Village - Probably won't find what you're looking for here.
Grammercy/Flatiron - Great spots, but will be too pricey
Kips/Murray/Midtown East/Lennox - I like the East side, but fewer amenity buildings, there are some in Murray Hill though and although the neighborhood is a little meh in terms of stuff to do, it's central and affordable and there's lot of other young people. Not the worst option.
Upper East - Probably not what you want, quieter, more residential, fewer amenity buildings. I like the Upper East, but have historically spent a lot of time there for various reasons. Used to be much quieter, now has more stuff to do, but still removed from the city a bit. Similar to UWS in the sense that if you want Manhattan, but a little nicer/quieter/more removed and usually at a decent cost, it's not a bad option.
That's my quick synopsis for you, obviously just my opinion, so just want to caveat before people come in here and start roasting me, haha but I think my guidance is directionally correct. IF you have to have amenity and want to be at $4500 for a one bed, you're probably best served looking at Hells Kitchen, Hudson Yards, Battery Park City, Fidi, and Murray Hill. Get on streeteasy and start poking around. Also good to note that the summer time is the toughest time to move, if you can wait, fall/winter are the best times to apartment hunt.
You can definitely find those types of places down in Fidi, but Fidi is kind of a meh neighborhood, not much going on after hours. Kind of like a SOMA in SF. Battery Park City is another place that has a number of luxury apartments, some a little older, that you could find for 4-5k. Other than that I don't think you'll find too many amenity buildings in that price range anywhere else in the city.
Thanks I really appreciate this. Correct - my office is in midtown. I don’t think I need the amenities of those buildings except doorman to pick up parcels. I just use the term in broad generalisation as these buildings tend to have nice furnishing.
Sounds in line with what I had been thinking: Tribeca/Gramercy/Flatiron/West Village/Chelsea are all out of my price range. Hells Kitchen/Hudson Yards/Battery Park seem like decent options but less nice a neighbourhood (I don’t mind) and can be further out with poorer access to subway connections (guess that’s one trade off). Upper East and Upper West feels too remote. I haven’t visited Murray Hill/Kips Bay before but people tell me it’s very fratty.
Why do you think LES and EV don’t have what I’m looking for? Is it too loud? I was thinking of LES/EV/FiDi. I actually don’t mind the SOMA vibe tbh. Thanks for the reference.
What’s your sense on what people spend on rent? My lease that’s ending soon is still a covid steal so this is a rude awakening. I’m conscious everyone has different financial habits and ways of thinking about personal savings/cash margin. I’m on 4-500k all in (maybe closer to 4 these days given how shit the GE space is now but I digress) and think 5 is stretching it but don’t know if am being overly conservative or stupid. If I can’t make the economics work, will just continue living with others or think about Brooklyn. Though most people have suggested Manhattan at least for a year or two.
I live in a luxury building in midtown east (sutton place), I just moved here a month ago. I work in midtown. I went through an extensive search for a luxury 1bed between 4-5k. The unit I settled on ended up being around 5.5k, and you’ll realistically be pushing 5k if you want something modern and up to date. I find it’s totally worth it. This area is a good option and there are tons of newer doorman/amenity buildings, midtown east is def not all fratty especially the further north you go. I did not want to live on the west side or anywhere near the cluster of apts on 42nd because hell's kitchen and that whole area sucks massively, however it really depends on what your priorities are. Do you care about the neighborhood? Only care about the building itself? Feel free to PM me if you want more info about buildings I toured etc. I considered pretty much every neighborhood you listed
LES is just kind of gritty and not that nice in my opinion. Obviously that's a generalization, but to me, kind of a new grad/cheap apartment type of area. East Village is nicer than other parts.
Couple other thoughts, if you really don't care about neighborhood, want value, and want an amenity building, there's plenty of stuff in Long Island City. It had a little bit of a weird vibe to me, but I was also looking for something that felt to New York like me and LIC wasn't it. With that said, it was clean, pretty decent transit into the city, and your dollar would go farther. Just make sure you vet the buildings, some are better than others.
I'm kind of surprised everyone thinks you're going to have to pay over 5k for something decent, when I was looking a couple months ago, there were plenty of decent things for around 4500, but obviously it's getting to peak season and everyone has a different definition of luxury. All-in-all, you make enough money so you'll be fine. Where it's fiercely competitive is if you want your own place for like 3500. Once you get above 4k, you're at an income level that get's a little tougher for folks to compete in. Getting a broker isn't a bad idea if you're on a time crunch, otherwise, I did it on my own and was fine, lobbed a bunch of streeteasy applications in, had a good package together with good credit, high income, etc and it wasn't that bad. Just my experience though, your mileage may vary. Good luck with the search, NYC is way better than SF in my opinion, worth the cost at least for a couple of years.
LES has some great luxury buildings and the farther east you go away from orchard/ludlow/christie the more you escape the noise and party goers. I personally think that right now, boutique rental and condo buildings in the EV/LES (washer dryer, nice apartments, rooftop, virtual doorman, but usually no gym) are the best deal in manhattan. Can get something decently spacious and nice for ~4-4.5k, just have to factor in gym costs if you don't have a free one at your office.
Especially if you are young, most of uptown can be a little soul crushing/boring. You'll also be far away from friends and the subways on the weekends just aren't that reliable and Ubers can take a long time in traffic on friday and saturday nights. If you want to live the NYC experience as a young person I really think you should try downtown, you can always move after a year if it's not for you. Just my two cents.
In Manhattan, luxury (assuming you want decent, non-first year analyst heavy location, high end, W/D or at least laundry in building, doorman) is not really possible with rent starting with a 4. These high-end 1 bedrooms in prime areas are like $6500+.
$4500 or so will get you a decent apartment but nothing ultra fancy - you could maybe find one with doorman + laundry in building if you're flexible on location. If you want to live in the west village where it seems you're looking, $5k is pretty close to the starting number for a livable one-bedroom... you see some really old or gross ones for less but again, assuming you want a decent place.
Where is your office? First step is figuring out what neighborhoods are a reasonable commute. Try to stay on 1 subway line to get to work and minimize walking
Thanks. My office is in midtown and it does seem like my expectations were too high so I need to think about trade offs. Happy to stay in less of a trendy neighbourhood for a better apartment. Current thoughts are LES/EV/FiDi. FiDi and LES seem better in terms of staying on 1 subway line but the trade off is either FiDi is “soulless” or LES is “too loud of a nightlife scene”. Will try to take a trip in to check out both neighbourhoods and have a sense
Yeah I would take a weekend tour. LES is not a very nice area in general imo. Fidi is fine, not my first choice but the apartments are nice. Be careful with rental (vs condo/coop) buildings in Fidi, as some of the "luxury" rental buildings are huge party buildings and will be very loud, thin walls, troublesome neighbors etc
Depending on where in midtown (if the 4/5/6, B/D/F/M or E train is closer to work) I would either look at Hells Kitchen (not too far west, think around Columbus Circle), East Village but not too far east, Noho/Nolita, or even Nomad/Gramercy.
FYI unless you find a rare no-fee apartment, you will pay a 15% broker fee regardless of whether or not you have an agent. So worth getting an agent as the market is still ridiculous right now, stuff rents in a matters of hours and often ends in bidding wars
Ridiculous how you can’t even get a nice building / apartment for $5,000 a month in New York.
What about the luxury building is appealing? I’m mostly trying to understand if it is the finishes of the apt, the amenities, or something else. Also keep in mind that there are tradeoffs between big buildings (usually those with amenities) and smaller ones (more privacy, quiet, etc).
If you want the all out amenities (pool, gym, doorman, etc) then you have very few areas to pick from (as the reply that went neighborhood by neighborhood shows you). And you’ll generally be far away from the nice areas (and transportation). I wouldn’t recommend fidi or the “cheaper” luxury, you quickly realize those amenities aren’t really great.
If you you want some key amenities, I’d also recommend other options. As an example, an equinox is nicer than basically any gym you’ll find in a building (and you get flexibility of location). Joining a social club (or similar), especially one with a pool, will be much nicer than what you get in your building.
My only point is that building amenities, especially at the price point, are usually underwhelming. Having a doorman is nice for certain things, but I would prioritize location and space (and how nice your actual apt is). Although I understand everyone has different priorities.
Totally agree with you. I was using luxury apartment as a catch all term. The only key amenity I care about is a doorman to pick parcels up. I very much care more about how the apartment looks like (furnishing etc), space, and having good subway access.
This gives you a lot more flexibility. Also consider that many all “non doorman” buildings have pacakage rooms and virtual doorman that you can use to let people in to drop stuff off. If you care more about how nice the apt is, you should focus on that (especially if you want space for wfh, etc). You still won’t get prime location since rents are high right now, but it’ll open doors and you can get something more centrally located (can find stuff in flatiron, Greenwich village, etc but you do have to lower expectation on what “nice” means as many buildings in nyc are pretty old, but you’ll find renovated kitchens, good natural light, nice bathrooms, etc just not separate soaking tub and shower, Viking range, you get the point).
I know you said you wanted to live in Manhattan, but I would take a look at LIC. It probably has the nicest “luxury” buildings with full pools, basketball courts, and gyms at your price point. It’s a quick train ride to Grand Central or Bryant Park.
LIC seems very polarising but I want to check it out. Wonder how much it hinders dating as a single guy but something’s gotta give..
I'm a student here and live in LIC. My one bedroom is around 4.5k. It's spacious and in a luxury building with full amenities. Honestly, I used to live in Manhattan but got jaded and moved to LIC for some peace and quiet. I think it is a really nice area, very convenient, but can get a little boring sometimes. It only takes 10 mins to get to midtown by the train but takes a full 30 mins to go downtown. You should def take a look a someone of the apartments in LIC. One bedrooms are at most 4k ish in luxury buildings.
I live in LIC and commute to mid town in ~25 minutes. I love this neighborhood and if you’re in queens plaza area getting to Manhattan is relatively easy. Would check out Hayden, Sven or Skyline tower
LIC is nice buildings and quick commute but you are right to be concerned about dating... many girls will absolutely lose interest the second they see Jersey or LIC, it's just a quirk of nyc dating even though it's very easy to get there
I agree with LIC. It's so nice but a bit expensive. I've been looking on https://www.spareroom.com/roommates and there are a couple Apartments in LIC and the areas are great. Close to the 7 Train too. If I had a choice, I would live in LIC over Manhattan any day.
I wouldn't sleep on uptown. UES around 2nd Ave is a total yuppie zone with more affordable doorman towers with a plethora of restaurants/bars catering to them, as long as N/Q/R takes you to work. Transferring subway lines once is not a big deal for weekend downtown activities and will have plenty going on in UES.
UWS under 65th (Lincoln Center/Columbus Circle area) is also slept on, but has easy access to 1 and B/D/F/M to get to most places you need, assuming this is better for work commute. You might even walk/Citibike to work on nice days in the spring/summer/fall. Admittedly, you're not going to find a "scene" here on the weekends as that is not what it's about in UWS at all.
The benefit of uptown is a significantly improved quality of life as there is a whole lot less shenanigans and riff-raff stuff going on and they actually have residential neighborhood feels (compared to like LES). If you like being active/outdoors and run/bike/play sports, there is a lot that Central Park has to offer for NYC standards.
Williamsburg is also a strong choice as it is basically Manhattan now with a unique mix of livability and trendy going on. I'd argue the best restaurants and bars that have opened in the last 5 years have been most concentrated in Williamsburg over any Manhattan neighborhoods. But you can't get around having to transfer for midtown - though the L train runs very frequently - maybe a couple years later if you end up moving to a trendier growth/VC shop located in Flatiron/Union Square :). Prices there have been climbing though, so you'll have to get lucky or end up paying similar to West Village prices these days.
LES GANGGG
Mid town east
I know you said you're thinking of living alone, but it's pretty amazing how far adding a roommate goes -- You can easily find a luxury 2 bedroom in prime downtown neighborhoods for under $10k a month.
Recognize that this is an unpopular opinion, but how do you all justify these crazy high rents? I’m an assoc on sell-side so granted I don’t earn as much as some on buyside, but still take-home around $9k per month after tax (salary). Bonus of 50-100% base. I spend less than $2k on rent (with a roommate) per month in manhattan with a doorman.
I would think that saving up for a down payment would be important to folks so they can eventually get out of the city and own property rather than rent.
Where will those savings come from when so much of your after-tax pay goes to rent?
Perhaps I’m just a miser but I see how high house prices are and just don’t want to suffocate with a mortgage later on.
Welcome any feedback on how you guys think about saving vs immediate pleasure of a luxury building?
Spending <$2k a month is a totally different lifestyle in my opinion if you’ve seen what’s out there right now. But the difference between a 3.5k and 5k apartment is what: $15-20k annualised? Once you’re on $500k a year or whatever, that 15-20k a year of extra money spent isn’t going to change whether you buy a 1m or 1.2m place in the future but it sure will change your happiness on a day to day basis just feeling nice.
You can probably save at least 100-150k a year if you “conservatively” make 400k. And 150-200k year making 500k. On an annual basis, that 15-20k you save a year to live nicely compared to your savings starts looking like an ok trade off.
Totally second this! I've always lived frugallyto avoid being enslaved into an expensive lifestyle and to have the freedom to move on if one day I choose to do so and no longer like the job.
- Started analyst IB years 6-7 years ago sharing a 2-bed with a roommate in Chelsea for $1,600
- Moved in with my then GF into a 1-bed in WV for $3.5k total (pre-war doorman building, laundry in basement)
- A couple years ago, bought a large one bed coop in a nice area in Brooklyn, but with low maintenance, total payment (mortgage + maintenance) ~$3.5k (locked in a 2.5% mortgage rate on a 10/1 ARM a couple years ago).
Spend frugally on housing and you'll be able to save, sign up separately only for the (luxury) services you want (most of my friends who live in luxury building end up using amenities way less than they thought) and do your job because you like it, not trapped into it! Spending profile should only have to change once you have kids.
I can’t imagine having roommates at 26-27 once you start hitting your stride in finance and comfortably making $300-$400k. It’s just not worth the extra headache and stress of roommates. Sure they are great if you always want someone to hang with and you still love going out to 2-3am getting hammered, but your priorities change after working 3-4 years of 70+ hour workweeks.
How long have you been in your building, did you move in before like spring 2022? If so, think you timed it well and maybe didn't get hit with the massive rent spike. Very very hard to find even a "starter" apartment that a 22 year old would want to live in for under $4-5k for a 2 bedroom. These days $2k per person gets you very little, even with 2 roommates.
Most of my friends who don't care much about a luxury living situation / still have roommates still pay $2.5-$3k for their half. Doorman / laundry buildings are incredibly expensive these days. You can do better living way uptown I guess
LES - The Essex, Sione, The Chrystie, The Rollins
All luxury/nice buildings in a great central-ish area surrounded by good food and close to almost all major subway lines. Worth looking into.
Thanks. These are on my list.
Personally would add the Ludlow over Sione if you're going into Midtown. I live in the area and toured all of these - biggest difference is proximity to subway lines; Sione is just a few blocks farther east but makes it much more annoying if it's raining or something. The Chrystie and the Essex are right on top of F stations that will take you straight into Midtown, and the Ludlow and the Rollins are only like 2 blocks off
I wouldn't live in the Lower east side. Too expensive and dirty in my opinion. Upper east side an upper west side is better. I lived in Astoria Queens for two years and it was amazing. It is right across the water and the N train was very convenient. Lower east side seems over hyped. I actually used SpareRoom.com to find my place in Astoria and the people I rented from were very nice. They gave me the Covid discount haha
If you’re prioritizing nicer buildings with space / amenities in decent areas Nomad and Chelsea (near the high line) are worth looking into. A lot of new luxury buildings, central locations with a decent number of things to do nearby, and relatively easy commute to midtown during the week and fun downtown things on weekends. not as great as the village, etc. but much easier to find a non-gross building and way easier to deal with management companies than one off landlords.
Can anyone recommend luxury buildings in Midtown East?
price range?
Less than $7,500 for a 1 bdrm, ideally with a den or office of sorts or amenity space
House 39 was a decent place we toured - but the area felt a bit younger than what we were looking for.
Financial District
Turtle Bay in Midtown East is a great neighborhood
Walking distance to most PE firms and banks. Its quiet and nice enough, more affordable with many nice buildings with doormen and laundry. Tons of restaurants around too
Agreed
IMO FiDi is best bang for your buck and disagree with some of the comments on it being dead on weekends. It’s become significantly more residential in recent years. Would check out 2 Gold Street - I pay ~4K and you get a decent gym, pool, doorman, stellar rooftop etc.. 5 min walk to Fulton street station which can pretty much get you anywhere in Manhattan and up to time square or grand central in 15 minutes. I also love how close it is to water, great for the summer since we are right next to a bunch of pier restaurants/bars with East river views.
I’ve been leaning toward FiDi actually. Subway links there are great, nice buildings, in Manhattan. Visiting soon to check out the area.
battery park city - clean, lots of greenery, walking distance world trade / fulton for all the major subways, close to soho/WV for restaurants/nightlife, neighborhood feel, close to the water
Don't mean to hijack the thread; does anyone have a preference for Midtown East vs Midtown West (aka Hell's Kitchen vs Sutton Palace/Murray Hill)? I'm working off 57th and 7th so west vs east commute times are similar (trying to walk). East seems like better bang for the buck based off StreetEasy, but curious if there's any major benefits/drawbacks that could outweigh the cost difference
Midtown East is where most of all the analysts and younger crowd typically thrives. Great bar scene and nightlife. Midtown west I think is a little more put-together as long as you avoid the heart of hells kitchen and are looking more straight east of Hudson Yards / Chelsea
Just to throw my thoughts in the ring, we ended up at Hudson Yards and love it. Rent is 6400/month for myself and my fiance, but that includes an extensive gym, full co-working setup, and spacious rooftop setup which is fun for hosting/grilling and has definitely saves us a few bucks on going out.
Definitely check out The Eugene, Lyra, 3 Eleven, 36 Hudson, and 555Ten as they are all great buildings - some are even offering concessions which may bring your effective rent down. Also no brokers fee (bless).
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