Finding somewhere to live in New York

The 40x rule and what stands in for it

The standard threshold is annual income of forty times the monthly rent, evidenced by an offer letter, recent pay stubs and often tax returns. If you fall short, or if you have no US credit history at all, the accepted substitutes are a US-based guarantor earning around eighty times the monthly rent, or a paid institutional guarantor such as Insurent or TheGuarantors, which charges a percentage of the annual rent. Some landlords will instead take several months of rent in advance, though the legal position on how much they may demand is not what people assume.

• 40x the monthly rent, annual, verified — the near-universal opening ask.
• A personal guarantor is usually expected to earn 80x the monthly rent and to be in the US, often in the tri-state area.
• Institutional guarantor services cost a percentage of the annual rent, paid up front.
• An employer letter on headed paper stating salary and start date carries real weight.

Broker fees, and who pays them now

New York has historically charged the tenant a broker fee of up to around 15% of the annual rent even when the broker worked for the landlord. The FARE Act shifted that cost onto the party who hired the broker, and the market has been adjusting since, with some of the fee reappearing inside the rent. Treat every listing as needing the question asked in writing before you view.

• Ask, in writing: who hired this broker, and what will I be invoiced at signing?
• “No fee” has historically often meant the fee is amortised into a higher rent.
• State law caps the security deposit at one month's rent for most tenancies and caps application fees at a nominal amount.

Rent stabilisation and what it means

Roughly a million apartments in the city are rent-stabilised, meaning increases are set annually by the Rent Guidelines Board and the tenant has a right to renew. Stabilisation attaches to the unit, not to you, and it is mostly found in older buildings of six or more units. Whether a unit is stabilised is a question you can ask, and the answer materially changes the value of a lease.

Buildings, boards and timing

Leases overwhelmingly start on the 1st, and units come to market roughly four to six weeks before that date, so searching earlier than that mostly shows you what is already gone. A rental in a condominium usually needs board approval on top of the landlord's — an application package, a fee and often two to four extra weeks. A co-op sublet is slower and more intrusive again, and can be refused without a stated reason.

• Start looking four to six weeks before your target 1st, not three months.
• Condo and co-op applications add fees and weeks; ask before you apply.
• Have the whole package scanned and in one folder — passport, visa, offer letter, pay stubs, bank statements, references.

In order

1. 1Solve the guarantor question first — a person, a service, or rent in advance.
2. 2Assemble the package: passport, visa, offer letter, pay stubs, bank statements, prior landlord reference.
3. 3Apply for an SSN as soon as you are eligible; start a credit file immediately after.
4. 4Start viewing four to six weeks before your target 1st.
5. 5Get the fee position in writing before you view, not at signing.
6. 6Ask whether the unit is rent-stabilised and whether board approval is required.
7. 7Set up Con Edison and renter's insurance before move-in day — both can take days.