How to Find an Apartment in New York

Introduction
New York offers some of the most unique and expensive apartment rentals in the country. Upper East Side doormen apartments are too pricey for most people even when shared with a roommate, but there are plenty of other options. From studios in Brooklyn's Park Slope to basement apartments in the West Village, every neighborhood has its own hidden bargains and treasures.

Instructions
Steps
Step One
Determine a price range. This is the deciding factor for most prospective apartment dwellers in New York. The least expensive Manhattan one bedrooms and studios are located in Washington Heights, the Bronx or Inwood. If you are looking for apartments with rock-bottom rents, check the less trendy sections of Queens or Brooklyn, like Bensonhurst.

Step Two
Call real estate brokers and apartment rental services. They charge a fee to help you find safe, secure apartments. You may have to go through a credit check with these services, but they do offer high quality apartments and save time by searching for you.

Step Three
Pound the pavement. Take a walk in the neighborhood where you'd like to live. Look for the occasional for rent sign. Read bulletin board postings in supermarkets, schools and churches, and in the breakroom where you work. Some of the best deals aren't advertised.

Step Four
Investigate choices on your own using the Village Voice, Craigslist, the New York Times, the New York Observer and local borough papers. Since these options are used by most apartment seekers, you need to be very lucky or persevering to get an apartment this way.

Step Five
Consider a sublet if you are looking for (or will settle for) a short term apartment. Many New Yorkers travel for business or pleasure for months at a time, and rent out their apartments temporarily to others who pay the rent for them while they are away. Most subleased apartments are fully furnished. Discuss payment and other sublease terms thoroughly before committing.

Step Six
Check roommate finder service or roommate wanted ads if you have cashflow problems. Take lifestyle concerns into account when interviewing prospective roommates. If you need to get up at five in the morning for work, make sure your roomie doesn't throw wild, all-night parties.

Tips & Warnings
Don't sublease from people who seem too flaky. They may return before the original terms have expired, and you'll be out on the street looking for another apartment way before you had planned.