Raise your hand if you’d like to live in a cramped apartment where laundry is down the street, parking spots are a hallucination and closet space is so tight you store toilet paper in the oven.
New York is not known for its spacious, well-appointed housing–except to the obscenely well-heeled. Finding an affordable rental in a central location with good amenities and no broker’s fee is a steep task.
Meanwhile, back in the heartland, Chicagoans enjoy a much more fluid market where renters can expect a lot more bang for the buck. Compare:
In New York’s East Village and Lower East Side, $1,000 to $1,200 a month rents a studio or junior one-bedroom, according to ads. Bathrooms are luxurious if you can turn completely around. A kitchen (make sure there IS one) “with counterspace” means room for a toaster oven and nothing else.
The same money in two similar Chicago neighborhoods–Bucktown and Wicker Park–practically buys a palace in comparison. One- and two-bedroom apartments fall in that range, often including amenities like parking and washer/dryer.
Naturally we sympathize with our East Coast friends … from the comfort of our sunny vintage rehabs.