In America sentimentality is almost no good at all, much less in homes. Here you get used to that every now and then you have to change home and work and despite everything you don't have the time to get down because you have to find another home and another job. They are definitely very pragmatic and not very sentimental compared to us Italians. The house problem in New York is one of the most boring and difficult things to solve. For example, in just 2 years I have changed 4 houses. Not just one!
How is home in New York? Here are some practical tips.
Get organized at least two months first minimum with boxes. However, if you find the right place, you can't wait more than a day to sign, otherwise someone will steal your place.
On the internet you will find millions of ads, from the photos they will all look immense and wonderful apartments, in 30% of cases the photos are not realistic and when you go to see them live the buildings are very bad. In 40% of cases instead you will run into scams. In 10% of cases they will not answer you or tell you that they have already rented, in the remaining 10% of cases you will find hidden expenses that will be added to the monthly fee, finally in 10% of cases perhaps something will give you a positive stimulus in this regard.
In the meantime, you will have lost almost a month.
New York: the basics of the Big Apple
You don't pay for water in New York, so be wary of anyone who tells you that your water bill is separate. Heating is generally also included. Electricity and gas are not included in most cases.
No rooftop houses. July and August are terrible months, the heat is devastating will also lift you the strength to get out of bed, you will get used to the air conditioning which is not good but helps, living on the roof means being overheated at any time of day and of the night.
The problem of blind bathroom in New York it covers 95% of the apartments, so I challenge you to find the right house that also has a window in the bathroom.
For the contracts, fear not, the formula is only one. There is no 4 + 4 or whatever, there is only one contract per year. If at the end of the year the owner is happy with you they will send you the renewal for a year or two, you can generally choose the one you prefer by calculating a 4% increase every time you renew.
Watch out for agencies
If you tell them I would like a house like this and my maximum budget is $ 1500, they will try anything to raise it to $ 1600 or $ 1690. Stay firm on your idea, there are hundreds of agencies and if they don't have something for you go elsewhere.
Watch out for those who rent a house without going through the agency, check the contract, sign it in the presence of a third person better if a notary something.
for riparazione Again, the owner should generally take care of things that are not our fault, i.e. broken radiators, toilets that don't drain, windows that don't open well and the like, but I often warn you to have contact with the homeowner to tell him that 'is something wrong here is very difficult. If you have problems with the landlord, the law is on your side and if you go to the right person, this person will help you lower the rent for the period of non-operation of the building.
Where to find a house in New York?
The choice of the area is even more difficult. On the basis of that, the size and above all the price is determined.
I found myself seeing tiny houses in the best areas of Manhattan and by tiny I mean exactly a square at 1000 $, great price but looking around there was something missing. The bathroom in this case was shared in the corridor, for example. Having a bathroom in the room was well worth it $ 800 more for a total of $ 1800 for a square where the kitchen is made up of a mini bar and electric plates instead of stoves.
Calculate one private room in shared apartment in Manhattan, midtown area, east village, Greenwich, upper east side, $ 1100 and up. A room in Brooklyn that is now nearly as unreachable as Manhattan costs $ 800 and up. But after long searches you can always find some sort of studio in Brooklyn or Haarlem or even Queens and Bronx from 1500 $ up, obviously depends on the area.
Let it be clear that New York is no longer what it was 20 years ago: dangerous and with gangsters on the street and a gun in low-crotch pants. Today it has become a very safe city, even at night (obviously a personal experience) but anything can happen anywhere and not just in a specific area. The ghetto no longer exists. IS also for this reason the costs have risen so much.
What to ask the owner
In the end, the most important things when you are about to take a house are two.
First of all ask if in the last ten years there have been infestations of bed bugs, bed bugs that perhaps in Europe are not even very developed.
Second, look around the apartment to see if there are any holes in the floor around radiators, pipes, stoves and the like. In New York there is a high concentration of mice, because of the high quantity of food consumed there are really many and the tendency they have is to get out of these holes as soon as they smell food or the like.
So get ready to keep everything from cereals to bread in the fridge!
