Living in NYC Forum

[Anonymous User]

I am excited to start my 2L SA this summer at a law firm located in midtown manhattan (between 5th and 6th and 45-55). Is it crazy to think I will be able to find furnished accommodations for 2 months that are less than a 20 minute walk away from the office? I will most likely be living with a roommate and am looking to spend less than 3,000 a month (and ideally less than 2,000). Has anyone had experience with this?

As always, many thanks in advance.

[cbbinnyc]

It's not crazy, you'll find something, but your options for <$3000 in Midtown Manhattan are not going to be so good.

What are your priorities? If you want a decently sized place, you'd be wise to check other neighborhoods. UWS, for example, is still expensive, but it's a lot for doable in your price range and the subway commute to midtown is easy and quick.

ETA: Look on airbnb to get an idea of pricing. Obviously the fact that you are subletting will limit your options a bit.

[k5220]

NYU law student housing might be a decent option: http://www.law.nyu.edu/housing/summerho ... nginnyslny (as low as $520/week and not a bad subway ride to midtown)

[Anonymous User]

^This is a great idea, something I will definitely look into. Do they accommodate requests to be put into 2 bedroom apartments with a friend (nothing on the website)? Also, I will be new to NYC, is this a good place to meet people/make friends? In a 2 bedroom apartment are there 2 bathrooms? Thanks!

[Mr. Peanutbutter]

It depends on what you want personally. Anything within 20 mins walking to Midtown sounds like a hellish place to live to me. A month unlimited metro card is only a little less than $120, and at least at my firm there were very few events in the mornings where I HAD to be there by a specific time, so it was no biggie if I got in a little late because of train traffic or whatever. Also, most firms will pay for you to take a cab/car service home from late night events.

If you make sure you find a place near a line where you don't have to transfer (shouldn't be hard from Midtown) you'll probably be just as well off as if you were within walking distance. And you won't have to worry about running into other summers/attorneys when you're just out doing random stuff in your neighborhood. You could also use the summer as a dry-run for figuring out which neighborhood you want to try to swing when you're a 1st year. I lived in a neighborhood I used to love to visit, but after spending a few months there I found out it's not where I want to live.

One last thing, it's likely that a good chunk of your class will be from NYC schools, so they'll be spread out all over the city. I felt like it was more likely than not that people lived in BK/Queens and some further-flung parts of Manhattan than right next to the firm.

[Anonymous User]

^This is a great idea, something I will definitely look into. Do they accommodate requests to be put into 2 bedroom apartments with a friend (nothing on the website)? Also, I will be new to NYC, is this a good place to meet people/make friends? In a 2 bedroom apartment are there 2 bathrooms? Thanks!

I was just a student there, so this isn't the program I applied through (and I can't really speak to meeting people as a summer intern), but in the application for student housing I think there was a section where you could submit roommate requests. You could also probably email the housing people. There's only one bathroom in a two bedroom apartment, unfortunately.