Movin' On Up (or Down)

I don't know what it is like to find an apartment in another city... I've only ever lived in the little town I grew up in and then in my little college town before living here in Manhattan. So perhaps it is just as bad here as it is in other big cities. I'd love to hear some stories about it, since I have just about had it with the real estate situation here.

I feel bitter towards this city I love because it is now impossible to find a reasonably priced 2-bedroom apartment in this town. People would think the rent we pay on our one-bedroom is incredibly high if they don't live in NYC. We pay $1700/month. And that is GOOD for what we have (a decently-sized 1 BR, 2nd floor walk-up with no dishwasher and only two closets, in the heart of the Upper West Side, 2 blocks from Central Park.) People would pay a lot more for this place. We got lucky.

I do believe we can get just as lucky with a 2-BR if we put the legwork in, and are willing to move to a less desirable neighborhood. For we will NOT get anything decent in Manhattan. No, I haven't started looking, but I just know. The reason why is this... we were just told, today, of a 2BR in Brooklyn available for what we pay now. My hubby called and the place is already taken. Gone. Rented. The management company has another one available in 2 weeks for $2400. I don't want to pay that much but other people will. In order for the prices to come down, people have to stop renting these places out. They go off the market as quickly as they were put on. You have to be ready to jump, checkbook in hand, or else someone else will get that "great deal".

We lower our standards and pay way too much for what we get, just to live in this city that sucks us dry. Taking every dime we make in exchange for really great sushi, a city that never sleeps, convenience, and to be in the heart of it all. We pay it because we don't want to move to Brooklyn or Queens... we want to say we live in
"the city". We pay because we love it here and think somehow it is worth it. But what about the infestation of rats that the city can't seem to get rid off? What about the urine stench in the subways? What about the lack of fresh air or green grass? Well, that all costs extra to fix.

But you'll see... we'll find that great deal on a 2-BR apartment, somewhere. You may not want to come and visit us now, but you will soon. When you look around your little 1-BR and realize that you are now paying over $2,000 for it and it gets you nothing but a fridge in your living room, or a shower in your kitchen, that's when we'll see you, moving in down the street from us.