Sign Up for Top Listings and Renting Tips

RENTBETTA.com offers no fee NYC apartments directly from property managers and building owners. You can book a tour and apply for any apartment on the site and will be connected directly with a leasing office, not a broker.  Craigslist occasionally has great deals directly from smaller landlords, but also has a lot of scams.  You can also avoid broker fees by joining a flat-share, and we like Spareroom, Facebook Marketplace and the housing groups NYC Rooms and Gypsy Housing the best.  Streeteasy has a no fee option but most of their listings are from brokers, meaning many are fake, outdated, or have hidden broker fees.

Broker fees are the bane of NYC renters.  They add thousands of dollars to the cost of renting for hard-working New Yorkers, and would seem an easy target for a popularly-inclined government to get rid of.  Yet they persist.  A guide to broker fees in New York City, and a few tips to negotiate them down or avoid them altogether with no fee apartments.

No fee, for-rent-by-owner apartments typically offer the best deals in the NYC rental market, and Craigslist’s no fee NYC apartments / housing for rent page is a good hunting ground, though you’re going to have to sift through a lot of (fake) broker listings and scams. RENTBETTA.com is another good option to find for-rent-by-owner apartments, and has nearly every apartment you can rent directly from a leasing office in NYC. Major apartment search websites like Streeteasy, RentHop, and PropertyClub are mostly filled with broker listings, which means you may waste a lot of time (and potentially money) in your apartment search.

Find a pet-friendly, no fee apartment on RENTBETTA.com to save thousands of dollars on broker fees. Look for a dog under 50 pounds (fully grown) that isn’t an “aggressive breed” (eg, Pitbulls, German Shepherds, Rottweilers) to qualify for most pet-friendly buildings.  Adopt a dog at the ASPCA or find a breeder in Pennsylvania, but avoid NYC pet stores, where you’ll pay more for a puppy that may be under-socialized.  For shots and routine care, Petco’s Vetco clinics are a great deal.

The easiest way to own a dog in NYC is to live in a pet-friendly apartment and follow the building's pet policy.  Even if your lease says “no pets”, try asking your landlord (nicely) for permission via email.  If you live in a walk-up building, the NYC Pet Law will allow you to keep a dog once you have it “openly and notoriously” for at least 90 days.  If you live in a doorman building, it's hard to skirt pet restrictions (we wouldn't even try), as the doorman will likely stop you the first time you walk in with a new dog. Try to keep good relations with your landlord, as they can decide not to renew your lease if they deem the dog a problem.

New York City is one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world, but it can also be a daunting place to find an apartment. The rental market is competitive, and prices are high. But don't worry, we're here to help. In this blog post, we'll walk you through the process of renting an apartment in New York City, step-by-step, and offer a few tips.

Save thousands of dollars by renting a no fee apartment and skip signing through a broker.  Get on a cheaper winter lease by joining a sublet for a few months to sign a new lease in January or February if you moved here during the summer. Never sign an 18 month lease! Look for a rent-stabilized apartment if you're here during bad times.  Book movers at least 3-4 few weeks in advance on the date you plan to move, even if you haven't found your new place yet. Follow our tips to get your security deposit back. Buy furniture at Ikea, not Safavieh. And buy all your household goods on Walmart.com, not the local Duane Reade.

To avoid a broker fee, you’re going to have to avoid a broker.  Check out RENTBETTA.com to see no fee apartments available directly from management companies across NYC.  Craigslist has a “no fee” option, but skip anything that looks like it’s posted by a broker or feels like a scam.  Pound the pavement in the neighborhoods you like, asking doormen for availabilities and looking for placards from management companies near the door. If you're open to roommates, join a flat-share of existing tenants you get along well with to avoid the fee.