Two college friends combine their budgets to find a rental in their favorite New York neighborhood. Which of these options would you choose?
Two college friends combine their budgets to find a rental in their favorite New York neighborhood. Which of these options would you choose?
The New York Times
Real Estate|They Wanted a Two-Bedroom on the Upper West Side, but How Many Stairs Are Too Many?
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Real Estate|The Hunt
They Wanted a Two-Bedroom on the Upper West Side, but How Many Stairs Are Too Many?
ByJOYCE COHENDEC. 26, 2019
Two college friends combine their budgets to find a rental in their favorite New York neighborhood. Which of these options would you choose?Related Article
Lauren Eggertsen and Robby Gouveia, close friends from their days at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif., were living separately in New York City when they made a pact: When their respective leases expired, they would find a place together in their favorite New York neighborhood, the Upper West Side.
Ms. Eggertsen had been the first to move to the city, three years ago, paying $1,800 a month for half of a converted one-bedroom in Stuyvesant Town. “I was far from the subway even though I could walk to my office, which was enjoyable after coming from California and sitting in traffic,” she said. But the area felt isolated and dull.
Mr. Gouveia arrived a year ago, rooming with two friends in a fourth-floor walk-up in a modern East Williamsburg building. “I wasn’t in college anymore and didn’t want to share with two guys,” he said. “I was paying just under $1,200 so I was able to save money, but Brooklyn was not the city feel I really wanted.”
This past summer, the friends, who are both in their mid-20s, were finally able to hunt together, and went looking for a sunny, spacious two-bedroom located somewhere between 60th and 96th Streets. The priority for Mr. Gouveia, who works as a leasing administrator for a Midtown rental development, was proximity to the subway. For Ms. Eggertsen, a senior fashion editor at WhoWhatWear.com, it was ample closet space.
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They didn’t want to walk more than two flights up. “Robby came from an insane walk-up,” Ms. Eggertsen said. “I didn’t even want to go visit him.”
Their budget topped out at $4,000 a month.
“A lot of stuff we found was in the $3,400 to $3,800 range, which is fine, but everything was really small and everything on the Upper West Side is pretty old,” Mr. Gouveia said.
They saw tiny rooms, dark spaces, cramped closets and too many stairs. “One thing was always missing from the list of items we weren’t willing to compromise on,” Ms. Eggertsen said.
To avoid a broker’s fee, they tried hunting on their own and saw what seemed like everything on the market, to no avail. “We needed extra ammunition to maybe look at places we didn’t have access to,” Mr. Gouveia said.
A church friend connected Ms. Eggertsen with Stephanie Larsen, an agent at Citi Habitats, who said she was quickly able to “rule out a lot.”
“They wanted character without it feeling dirty and dingy, which can be tricky,” Ms. Larsen said.
Among their choices:
No. 1
West 72nd Street Two-Bedroom
This apartment, on the fourth floor of a five-floor walk-up, teemed with prewar details. It had two large bedrooms — one without windows. There were high ceilings, multiple closets and a drab kitchen. It sat above a row of retail establishments and faced a sunny back courtyard. The rent was $3,850.
No. 2
West End Avenue Duplex
This fourth-floor duplex, also in a walk-up, had a brick wall and an extra half-bathroom. It included a private roof terrace with a panoramic view. The smaller bedroom was reached by a spiral staircase. The rent was $3,450.
No. 3
West 79th Street Two-Bedroom
This apartment was in a co-op building with a doorman and an elevator. The unit faced another building and had a large foyer, good closet space, a large kitchen with a dishwasher, and a bonus — a laundry room. The rent was $3,800.
Find out what happened next by answering these two questions:
Which Would You Choose?
West 72nd Street Two-Bedroom
West End Avenue Duplex
West 79th Street Two-Bedroom
Which Did They Choose?
West 72nd Street Two-Bedroom
West End Avenue Duplex
West 79th Street Two-Bedroom
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