Scam, scam, scam, scam, scam, baked beans, sausage, ... and scam!
Just a quick follow up story on our apartment hunt.
Even if we ended up using a broker which is the fastest, easiest and safest way to find an apartment in New York City, craig's list did help us in our search and I would recommend anyone not familiar with the NY real estate market to have a look on the website before starting his search for an apartment. Thanks to the site, you get a pretty good idea what you get in return for your budget (and in our case, it gently prepared us that our "Brussels apartment" budget was maybe a bit too optimistic, i.e. way too low!). So have a look...
... but renters beware! There are a lot of Internet scams these days, and the real estate market is not different. When browsing craig's list, I stumbled upon a too good to be true apartment: a huge loft in Gramercy Park way below our budget! Ok, you do suspect deep inside that this can't be right, but your naive side just thinks: "What if this is our lucky break?" So Ward sent an e-mail. Summarized, this was the reply: "Hi, I'm a good American citizen who had to transfer to the UK for my job at Big Oil Company X with registered office at Y. I wanted to sell my apartment but the market got inflated (?) so now I want to rent but only to people who will take good care of it. So if you are willing to send me three months rent in cash, it's yours! My son will give you the keys..." Hmmmmm... So, first thing I did is google the e-mail address. Nothing. Secondly, we called the man - he answers us that indeed, the apartment is still for rent and we can get it if we pay in cash. Thirdly, we called the Oil Company X - they've never heard of this man! Finally, I google the address of the loft for rent... seems that the exact same loft is for sale for - of course - a huge amount of money. Congratulations, you almost got scammed!
Luckily, we questioned the whole thing... but others aren't so lucky. When doing some further research on the Internet, I found out that many people have already handed over their money to a person claiming to be the owner of the apartment who then just disappears in thin air.
So, craig's list: use with care!
Links:
Website where you can find and report scammers
Article on NY rent scams
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
Finding an Apartment (Part III)
Show Me the Money!
We had found THE apartment – but now we still needed to find the certified checks to close the deal.
Luckily, Ward – he's a consultant after all – had thought about the money in advance and had made an appointment back in Belgium with Chase (the consumer bank of JP Morgan Chase) to open a bank account. Opening an account went amazingly easy and fast – the same day we had our first American bank account and we could already wire the money we needed. However, the closing of the deal still didn't go that smoothly as we hoped.
Monday evening the money was transferred – however, Tuesday was a bank holiday, "Veteran's day" or "Wapenstilstand" in Dutch. Only Thursday evening we got the happy confirmation that the money had arrived, while Friday afternoon the signing of the lease was already on the agenda… All the time in the world? The same evening we went to the nearest Chase branch in Chelsea to collect our checks. Sufficient funds on our bank account, yes, but when the kind lady behind the counter saw two foreigners without American ID (only a strange brown booklet from an exotic country), without bank cards (those were still on their way), without any paperwork to confirm their existence to the bank (as this still needed to be entered into the system of Chase) just before closing time asking to write out a huge amount… that's where it went wrong. "No, thank you, come again…"
So we brought in the big guns, early Friday morning we went to the biggest Chase branch in New York – the one on 5th avenue – and patiently we explained our situation… and *drum ruffle* … we got our certified checks! One step closer to the signing of our lease.
However, we still needed to face the arrogant stereotype New York real estate lawyer representing our landlord. This guy was "time is money" written all over him… I pointed out a clause that did not make sense in our situation (OK, I can't help it, I'm a lawyer, I can't just sign a contract without changing anything) and kindly requested to just replace it with a new, more appropriate but harmless sentence. The real estate lawyer responded very helpfully: "Don't touch our templates… if you touch our templates, no deal!" – and babbled about another clause that did not relate in any way to what I had asked him to change. Just to prove, lawyers can be full of bullshit (ouch, admitted by a lawyer black on white – this will haunt me!). In the end, I just gave in as I didn't want to rip Mr. Big Real Estate Lawyer out of his "template cocoon" and since we really, really wanted the apartment. Though I have to say, once we handed over the check with his broker fee, the real estate lawyer was much friendlier....... maybe, I should just take it all back.
*** For the record, the above is not a generalization of real estate lawyers - I know a lot of great real estate lawyers who are very helpful, capable and intelligent ;-) ***
So that's how Evelyn and Ward got to sign their lease agreement for their very first New York apartment! A special thanks to our broker!
Stay tuned for more adventures…
We had found THE apartment – but now we still needed to find the certified checks to close the deal.
Luckily, Ward – he's a consultant after all – had thought about the money in advance and had made an appointment back in Belgium with Chase (the consumer bank of JP Morgan Chase) to open a bank account. Opening an account went amazingly easy and fast – the same day we had our first American bank account and we could already wire the money we needed. However, the closing of the deal still didn't go that smoothly as we hoped.
Monday evening the money was transferred – however, Tuesday was a bank holiday, "Veteran's day" or "Wapenstilstand" in Dutch. Only Thursday evening we got the happy confirmation that the money had arrived, while Friday afternoon the signing of the lease was already on the agenda… All the time in the world? The same evening we went to the nearest Chase branch in Chelsea to collect our checks. Sufficient funds on our bank account, yes, but when the kind lady behind the counter saw two foreigners without American ID (only a strange brown booklet from an exotic country), without bank cards (those were still on their way), without any paperwork to confirm their existence to the bank (as this still needed to be entered into the system of Chase) just before closing time asking to write out a huge amount… that's where it went wrong. "No, thank you, come again…"
So we brought in the big guns, early Friday morning we went to the biggest Chase branch in New York – the one on 5th avenue – and patiently we explained our situation… and *drum ruffle* … we got our certified checks! One step closer to the signing of our lease.
However, we still needed to face the arrogant stereotype New York real estate lawyer representing our landlord. This guy was "time is money" written all over him… I pointed out a clause that did not make sense in our situation (OK, I can't help it, I'm a lawyer, I can't just sign a contract without changing anything) and kindly requested to just replace it with a new, more appropriate but harmless sentence. The real estate lawyer responded very helpfully: "Don't touch our templates… if you touch our templates, no deal!" – and babbled about another clause that did not relate in any way to what I had asked him to change. Just to prove, lawyers can be full of bullshit (ouch, admitted by a lawyer black on white – this will haunt me!). In the end, I just gave in as I didn't want to rip Mr. Big Real Estate Lawyer out of his "template cocoon" and since we really, really wanted the apartment. Though I have to say, once we handed over the check with his broker fee, the real estate lawyer was much friendlier....... maybe, I should just take it all back.
*** For the record, the above is not a generalization of real estate lawyers - I know a lot of great real estate lawyers who are very helpful, capable and intelligent ;-) ***
So that's how Evelyn and Ward got to sign their lease agreement for their very first New York apartment! A special thanks to our broker!
Stay tuned for more adventures…
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Finding an Apartment (Part II)
More Bang For Your Buck!
So far, our search for the perfect New York apartment was not what you call a huge success: we ended up with an application for a very small and too expensive apartment in Chelsea. But were we searching in the right neighbourhood?
In Manhattan, the desirability of a neighbourhood changes so fast that within 5 to 10 years a previously – "only enter if you're suicidal" neighbourhood turns into "the next hottest thing", and thus the prices go up. Chelsea, Meatpacking District, West Village, Greenwich, SoHo, they are all hotter than hot, so extremely expensive. Maybe we needed to search in a more residential – and less "happening" neighbourhood?
Although we heard many nice things about it, we – as very white, blue-eyed and blond Belgians – weren't brave enough for Harlem. Since the neighbourhood goes dead after 5 pm, the Financial District was also not an option. The Upper East Side was too posh for our taste and on the wrong side of Manhattan (as Ward's school is located on the West side and the transport system is organized vertically).
So Upper West Side, it is! Located at the West-side of Central Park, known for its brownstones (those brown houses 4 to 5 stories high with the cute steps) and its greystones (the grey high elevator buildings with a classic touch), more residential and most importantly, (somewhat) cheaper than Chelsea and the other hot downtown neighbourhoods! Or as our broker said "More bang for your buck!". We asked to schedule some viewings – first one, again a disappointment, ok – it's a bit bigger, steps from Central Park but a room in the cellar is not what I call a "bedroom". Second viewing… we could live in it… but the third viewing: THIS IS IT!
OK, again in the high end of our budget but what do we get in return? A one bedroom in a greystone (elevator) building with laundry on-site, three blocks from Central Park and the metro station, three metro stops from Columbia, a beautiful classic apartment with huge windows and hardwood floors, a spacious (not in broker terms but in "I have to live in it" terms) bedroom, a kitchen with dining area, including dishwasher (!) and a huge American fridge. Where do we sign?
Being accepted by the landlord was not a problem – our broker had already "warned" him of our profile (see the previous post). But now we needed to get the money to close the deal (1 month rent in advance, 2 months' broker fees and 6 months' security!). The Americans seem to have the annoying habit to pay large amounts with checks… yes, checks, those little papers we used to pay with in Belgium back when exchange trading in cows and horses was eliminated (sorry, but in Belgium, and a big part of Europe, checks really are ancient history!). You can't explain Americans that Belgians only use money transfers now. A check means "security" – when handing over a check, you have the money in your hands (although in these times this may be far from true). Enfin, we needed to find some of those checks or no apartment!
***to be continued***
Links:
Useful Upper West Side site with overview of restaurants and shops per block
New York City Apartment Living 101
So far, our search for the perfect New York apartment was not what you call a huge success: we ended up with an application for a very small and too expensive apartment in Chelsea. But were we searching in the right neighbourhood?
In Manhattan, the desirability of a neighbourhood changes so fast that within 5 to 10 years a previously – "only enter if you're suicidal" neighbourhood turns into "the next hottest thing", and thus the prices go up. Chelsea, Meatpacking District, West Village, Greenwich, SoHo, they are all hotter than hot, so extremely expensive. Maybe we needed to search in a more residential – and less "happening" neighbourhood?
Although we heard many nice things about it, we – as very white, blue-eyed and blond Belgians – weren't brave enough for Harlem. Since the neighbourhood goes dead after 5 pm, the Financial District was also not an option. The Upper East Side was too posh for our taste and on the wrong side of Manhattan (as Ward's school is located on the West side and the transport system is organized vertically).
So Upper West Side, it is! Located at the West-side of Central Park, known for its brownstones (those brown houses 4 to 5 stories high with the cute steps) and its greystones (the grey high elevator buildings with a classic touch), more residential and most importantly, (somewhat) cheaper than Chelsea and the other hot downtown neighbourhoods! Or as our broker said "More bang for your buck!". We asked to schedule some viewings – first one, again a disappointment, ok – it's a bit bigger, steps from Central Park but a room in the cellar is not what I call a "bedroom". Second viewing… we could live in it… but the third viewing: THIS IS IT!
OK, again in the high end of our budget but what do we get in return? A one bedroom in a greystone (elevator) building with laundry on-site, three blocks from Central Park and the metro station, three metro stops from Columbia, a beautiful classic apartment with huge windows and hardwood floors, a spacious (not in broker terms but in "I have to live in it" terms) bedroom, a kitchen with dining area, including dishwasher (!) and a huge American fridge. Where do we sign?
Being accepted by the landlord was not a problem – our broker had already "warned" him of our profile (see the previous post). But now we needed to get the money to close the deal (1 month rent in advance, 2 months' broker fees and 6 months' security!). The Americans seem to have the annoying habit to pay large amounts with checks… yes, checks, those little papers we used to pay with in Belgium back when exchange trading in cows and horses was eliminated (sorry, but in Belgium, and a big part of Europe, checks really are ancient history!). You can't explain Americans that Belgians only use money transfers now. A check means "security" – when handing over a check, you have the money in your hands (although in these times this may be far from true). Enfin, we needed to find some of those checks or no apartment!
***to be continued***
Links:
Useful Upper West Side site with overview of restaurants and shops per block
New York City Apartment Living 101
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Moving to New York City – Step 1: Finding an Apartment
Spacious one bedroom with exposed brick!
After weeks / months of preparing, searching new posts on graigslist and broker websites, almost being scammed (still to be posted – stay tuned) and contacting brokers, in the beginning of November 2008, we finally put theory into practice: the search for an apartment in Manhattan.
Compared to Brussels, the real estate market of New York is very liquid: each day a few hundred new apartments are added and on the same day an equal number is rented. So, must be peanuts to find an apartment in the Big Apple … if only we weren't (i) foreigners (from Belgium, the capital of Brussels!), (ii) without fixed income as of January '09 and (iii) without guarantor (being, a rich sugar daddy). In addition, the relation landlord – renter is completely different in the US than in Belgium. Where the Belgian renters are (maybe over-)protected, in the US it is more an "eat or be eaten" mind-set. The renter needs to fill in an application (for which in most cases he needs to pay an application fee!) and the landlord decides at his own discretion whether or not to accept the renter and how much security he will ask. Finally – and this is unthinkable in Belgium, the renter needs to pay the broker's fees up to 10 to 15% of the annual rent.
… OK … so this may not be as easy as we thought.
Upon arrival in New York and after having dumped our luggage in our cosy bed & breakfast (which we can recommend btw!), we just enter the first broker's agency which crosses our path (right around the corner from our B&B). A strategy from Ward – talk to as many people as possible within as little time as possible. Afterwards, it seems that the broker's agency is JC De Niro & Associates: an upscale broker's agency incorporated by Jack De Niro (indeed, family of…). Our broker, however, thinks we have potential (a future MBA student sponsored by his employer who may once buy an apartment in New York – who knows?) and immediately helps us in our search. Before we know it, we're facing our first New York apartment viewings in Chelsea (downtown Manhattan).
Many people warn you about New York apartments, they're expensive and small. So we came prepared… According to craigslist and the broker websites, the high end of our budget (i.e., the price of a nice Brussels' apartment times three) buys us the following in Chelsea: "Chelsea steal! Elevator building with 24-hour doorman and on-site laundry. Close to all transportation. Spacious one bedroom with hardwood floor, generous storage space, on a high floor and abundant natural light". Sounds perfect, not?
Reality hurts. Our first viewing in Chelsea is indeed an apartment in an elevator building – and indeed, there is a little old man with gloves at the entrance – and indeed there is an extra room which might, with some imagination, qualify as a "one bedroom" – and there are hardwood floors, but they may be a little gray rather than brown – and there is some "abundant natural light" thanks to a small window facing a wall. Wake-up call!
The following viewing surprises us (at least compared to what we saw earlier): ok, a small but decent apartment/studio with everything you need and when you look out the window, the top of the Empire State Building! This is what you expect when you move to New York, not? Ward, very excited, convinces me to sign an application form – and nothing's free in NYC, to hand over the dollars to consider our application, …
At night, there is doubt – do we really need to spend the following year and a half in a small apartment of 35 m²?
***to be continued***
Links:
Craigslist
Our B&B
Our broker
After weeks / months of preparing, searching new posts on graigslist and broker websites, almost being scammed (still to be posted – stay tuned) and contacting brokers, in the beginning of November 2008, we finally put theory into practice: the search for an apartment in Manhattan.
Compared to Brussels, the real estate market of New York is very liquid: each day a few hundred new apartments are added and on the same day an equal number is rented. So, must be peanuts to find an apartment in the Big Apple … if only we weren't (i) foreigners (from Belgium, the capital of Brussels!), (ii) without fixed income as of January '09 and (iii) without guarantor (being, a rich sugar daddy). In addition, the relation landlord – renter is completely different in the US than in Belgium. Where the Belgian renters are (maybe over-)protected, in the US it is more an "eat or be eaten" mind-set. The renter needs to fill in an application (for which in most cases he needs to pay an application fee!) and the landlord decides at his own discretion whether or not to accept the renter and how much security he will ask. Finally – and this is unthinkable in Belgium, the renter needs to pay the broker's fees up to 10 to 15% of the annual rent.
… OK … so this may not be as easy as we thought.
Upon arrival in New York and after having dumped our luggage in our cosy bed & breakfast (which we can recommend btw!), we just enter the first broker's agency which crosses our path (right around the corner from our B&B). A strategy from Ward – talk to as many people as possible within as little time as possible. Afterwards, it seems that the broker's agency is JC De Niro & Associates: an upscale broker's agency incorporated by Jack De Niro (indeed, family of…). Our broker, however, thinks we have potential (a future MBA student sponsored by his employer who may once buy an apartment in New York – who knows?) and immediately helps us in our search. Before we know it, we're facing our first New York apartment viewings in Chelsea (downtown Manhattan).
Many people warn you about New York apartments, they're expensive and small. So we came prepared… According to craigslist and the broker websites, the high end of our budget (i.e., the price of a nice Brussels' apartment times three) buys us the following in Chelsea: "Chelsea steal! Elevator building with 24-hour doorman and on-site laundry. Close to all transportation. Spacious one bedroom with hardwood floor, generous storage space, on a high floor and abundant natural light". Sounds perfect, not?
Reality hurts. Our first viewing in Chelsea is indeed an apartment in an elevator building – and indeed, there is a little old man with gloves at the entrance – and indeed there is an extra room which might, with some imagination, qualify as a "one bedroom" – and there are hardwood floors, but they may be a little gray rather than brown – and there is some "abundant natural light" thanks to a small window facing a wall. Wake-up call!
The following viewing surprises us (at least compared to what we saw earlier): ok, a small but decent apartment/studio with everything you need and when you look out the window, the top of the Empire State Building! This is what you expect when you move to New York, not? Ward, very excited, convinces me to sign an application form – and nothing's free in NYC, to hand over the dollars to consider our application, …
At night, there is doubt – do we really need to spend the following year and a half in a small apartment of 35 m²?
***to be continued***
Links:
Craigslist
Our B&B
Our broker
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