
First off, I should probably say that I’ve never had to look for an apartment in New York City. Neal (bf) and Steven (bf’s bro) were kind enough to take care of that for me before I first came out here, and we’ve lived in that same apartment for the last six years. So even though I had a ridiculous amount of moving practice in Santa Cruz, I’ve also gotten way out of shape.
The first place I looked at was a basement apartment in South Park Slope for under $1000 (unheard of here, for those who have never experienced the steepness of NYC rental prices). It wasn’t tiny, it actually had windows, and the owner was very nice and seemed easy to deal with. And it had a BACKYARD. But the neighborhood is like a wasteland and I felt like I would have been exiling myself to move there. Plus: 1 tiny closet, no separate kitchen and living room area. I couldn’t see us and the kitties living there or calling it home. A no-go.
Railroad Apartments Basically Always Have Shitty Kitchens and Bathrooms
Next up, we looked at a railroad apartment in Bushwick for just over $1000. It was a little farther out than we intended to move, but we decided to give it a look. From the moment the guy opened the door, he was clearly taken with us, especially Neal. “Red beard!” he cried out as if he had known us for years. (more…)