Apartment Rentals

I have been reading on this forum recent posts about illegal short term holiday rentals. My husband and I will be in NYC for three weeks in December and are looking to book an apartment through NY Habitat. Is this likely to be a legitimate holiday rental?

Apartment Rentals

Ask them.

Apartment Rentals

Do you know the address?

I%26#39;m no expert, but just based on what I%26#39;ve read here on TA and elsewhere, there are (at least) three questions I%26#39;d want answered before agreeing to a rental:

1. Does the apartment actually exist?

2. Is the person who is renting the apartment to you operating within the rules of his/her lease, homeowner%26#39;s association or co-op board?

3. Are short-term rentals of this unit legal (in other words, is this a ';legal hotel';)?

While you could have a perfectly good experience even if the apartment owner has not satisfied the 2nd %26amp; 3rd items (neither is a problem unless you get caught), you%26#39;ll be in a potentially vulnerable position that could spoil your vacation. Unfortunately, it is difficult to verify all of this information independently, but I would at least question the rental agency about these specifics.

If you get an address, search for it here on TA. Sometimes people do post information about specific units that are known to be real or not.

NY Habitat is not likely to rent an apt. that doesn%26#39;t exist, so the real issue is whether the person who owns the apt. is renting it legally according to the rules/laws of the building and the city. There are some condo buildings that do allow short term rentals (or don%26#39;t preclude them) although some would say the zoning laws of the city would still preclude short term rentals. Have you looked at b %26amp; b%26#39;s and suite hotels too? Agent fees for NY Habitat can start to get steep for a 3 week rental.

greg-loretta - wow, 3 weeks in NY in December is going to cost a lot no matter how you slice it. That%26#39;s high season.

I%26#39;m curious, how much is this NY Habitat rental you found? If it%26#39;s cheap (by which I mean, too good to be true), look elsewhere.

What%26#39;s your budget? Have you looked at Queens or Brooklyn, or NJ? There are recent threads here stating that Furnished Quarters in NJ has legit, worry-free arrangements.

Nothing personal, but it is pretty amusing reading this type of question. Reminds me of an old stand-up joke by Ellen DeGeneres:

How come friends and relatives who allegedly love you say things like, ';Ugh, this milk smells rotten! Here, try it. You know, just in case it%26#39;s okay.';