> I have a young (not so anymore, I think he’s 28) friend who’s an editor in
> DC. . . . He just got himself a new apartment, 2BR, in Fairfax County. $1800 per
> month. That’s more than I paid for my house IN DC.
So why is he living in Fairfax County if he works in D.C.? There are much cheaper places to live that are closer to D.C. I pay $893 a month for a two-bedroom apartment and am much closer to downtown D.C. (And, since somebody will probably quibble about the neighborhood, it’s a reasonably clean, crime-free area.)
and further writes:
> Telecommuting. It’s what’s for dinner.
It’s also not possible for most jobs.
and also writes:
> . . . rural Ohio . . .
I grew up in rural Ohio. I mean really rural Ohio, the sort that’s all farms and occasional small towns, not the sort that’s inhabited by telecommuting editors. There’s no job there for me. There’s also not much to do.
The short answer is that yes, if you want to move to New York and purchase or rent an apartment in one of the most desirable residential areas, it will most likely be “comically expensive.” However, if you are looking at a less desirable area (particualrly now, in the Outer Boroughs) you can find more reasonable rents.
Part of this has to do with rent regulation. The majority of rental apartments in Manhattan are rent stabilized, which limits the amounts of increase a landlord can charge an existing tenant. Rent increases on vacancy also used to be severely limited, but in recent years landlords have been permitted to charge a significant increase on vacancy. Because of this, a large portion of the housing stock is taken by tenants paying below-market rent (sometimes severely below market rent). Although recent law changes have mitigated this a bit, it is still a major factor. Historically, this has reduced the incentive for developers to build rental apartments in Manhattan.
Since the 1960s, and most heavily during the 1980s, a large number of buildings have become coops (and some condos), which further reduces the rental stock.
Because of this, there are a limited number of free-market rental apartments in the City. Because of the limited supply, free-market rents have spiked sharply in times of high demand. Also, initial rents can vary wildly, with regulated apartments coming on the market after a long occupancy often having below-market rents.
My search turned up 58 one-bedrooms under $1000 in Manhattan, nearly all in Harlem. (One that was listed as Soho was really Queens.) When people make generalizations about Manhattan, they generally are leaving out Harlem. It’s one place where you can still find high crime and low rents.
The housing market in NYC soared through the roof in the mid-80’s. I bought my house in Queens in 1977 and by 1985, I could have sold it for 4 times more. Right now, I could sell it for 6 times more, especially since I own a totally detached corner property with a nice bit of yard space. Although property values have steadily increased, the bulk of the inflation occurred by the mid-80’s.
Manhattan was, of course, the first borough to become expensive. In the 60’s and 70’s, it became fashionable to move to the Long Island suburbs. The Long Island Railroad was a luxury ride to work. As Long Island became more and more populated, the LIRR became less of a luxury and more of a commute akin to mass transit. Property taxes made LI a lot less attractive than the inner boroughs.
Then came gentrification. The upper middle class wanted Manhattan back. Barring that, they wanted the easiest commute to Manhattan. Any area within 1-3 subway stops to lower Manhattan became prime real estate. Even in the farther reaches of the boroughs, express bus service into Manhattan started to become the norm, greatly reducing the normal stresses of mass transit commuting. Rents in the boroughs started going up; rents in Manhattan went even higher.
Today, you will pay between $2,000-$3,000 for a Manhattan apartment in a fairly modern building. In an older, tenament-type walkup, you will still find yourself paying well over $1,000 in rent.
Areas close to Manhattan are still undergoing massive gentrification. Even some low-income housing projects are being converted into cooperatives. There is no end in sight.