1st years in NYC biglaw - how much do you pay on rent? Forum

[Crazystallion]

Above, utilities are included in rent. Also a parking garage and major supermarket 2 minute walk away.

[Anonymous User]

Living in midtown east near the UN, 2 BR with doorman/decent ammenities for 5.4k, splitting rent with my GF. The lease was negotiated in July 2021 and the landlord was kind enough to not raise the rent one year later. I heard this is pretty rare and most rentals starting this year would be quite higher than 2021.

[Anonymous User]

July 2022 record high rent in Manhattan. Brooklyn, safe area, 15 min walk to subway, 1 hr to get to Manhattan, 2 bedroom, 1 bath, no doorman, $2200 total. East Flatbush near Crown Heights.

How many times per week are you going into the office?

I relocated from NYC during the pandemic, but for what it's worth this was almost exactly my life, and that hour commute was kind of a zen experience, since I usually got a seat and was able to close my eyes and decompress. They re-listed my $2000 studio for $2500 on Franklin. If I were to move back to NYC, I would absolutely go straight back to Crown Heights.

[Anonymous User]

I’m living in a rent-stabilized building in midtown west/hells kitchen area with doorman and gym/other amenities. 15 min walk/8 min bike ride to the office and 15 min bike ride to a few of the trendy areas, so no regrets. Tiny studio for a bit under $2600 with a small river view which is nice, but no space for a sofa. Basically compromising space for convenience.

[Anonymous User]

bump

Curious about how much associates who just started are paying.
Sharing info for someone else- 2900 for an updated alcove studio in the West Village

[Anonymous User]

Stub year here, moved to LIC and splitting a 2b2b in a luxury building w/ my best friend in law school, 5380 in total (2790 for master bedroom w/ en suite bathroom; 2590 for guest bedroom w/ bathroom across the hallway; share a beautiful spacious corner view living room w/ floor-to-ceiling windows). Top amenities and subway station within 20 steps from apt lobby (we both work in midtown, so commute is like 10-15min door-to-door for both of us).

TBH we signed really early (03/2022) so this deal is pretty sweet considering that the same unit on similar floors are on market for like 5900/mo now.

[Anonymous User]

Stub year here. I went to law school in NYC and stayed at the place I was living in during law school. I pay $1500 for one room in a 2 bed (walkup, no amenities) in prime UES. I’m paying the least out of everyone I know and it was great to have 0 moving costs. I also don’t mind living with a roommate because I grew up in NYC and don’t need to ball out on the “NYC experience.” Anecdotally, my stub year friends all seem to be paying between $3.3-3.6k for studios in Manhattan. The people in one bedrooms (usually people living with partners) seem to be paying between $4.2 to $5k in Manhattan.

[Anonymous User]

I pay 4k as a stub year new to city. However I can walk to my office and there's a gym in the building, so I save money there. Still sucks though.

[Anonymous User]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

[Res Ipsa Loquitter]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

[Anonymous User]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Sometimes it’s good to enjoy a nice place when you’re young and get it out of your system. Plus, there’s an argument that the first couple of years practicing law are tough, and you should do everything you can to make the rest of your life comfortable. You can also find a roommate if it becomes too expensive.

[thisismytlsuername]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

Why? I know it's hard to believe from this board, but some people like fun and don't ruthlessly prioritize maximum efficiency in every facet of their life.

[Res Ipsa Loquitter]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

Why? I know it's hard to believe from this board, but some people like fun and don't ruthlessly prioritize maximum efficiency in every facet of their life.

I agree with you that many TLSers are unreasonably cheap and treat biglaw like a 2 or 3 year grind to extract as much cash as possible from their firms while living like monks. I myself spent over $3000 as a first year on rent.

But $5000 is a bad idea in my opinion. first years have no idea if they’ll like biglaw or be any good at it. Dropping $5K makes more sense after someone confirms they are a good associate who will be able to stick out a few years. Throw in any loans, and any salary advances that may need to be paid back, and the situation gets even bleaker

[thisismytlsuername]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

Why? I know it's hard to believe from this board, but some people like fun and don't ruthlessly prioritize maximum efficiency in every facet of their life.

I agree with you that many TLSers are unreasonably cheap and treat biglaw like a 2 or 3 year grind to extract as much cash as possible from their firms while living like monks. I myself spent over $3000 as a first year on rent.

But $5000 is a bad idea in my opinion. first years have no idea if they’ll like biglaw or be any good at it. Dropping $5K makes more sense after someone confirms they are a good associate who will be able to stick out a few years. Throw in any loans, and any salary advances that may need to be paid back, and the situation gets even bleaker

Meh. It's a one year lease and assuming you're not a complete fuckup you should be expecting to make millions of dollars over your career.

[Anonymous User]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

Why? I know it's hard to believe from this board, but some people like fun and don't ruthlessly prioritize maximum efficiency in every facet of their life.

I agree with you that many TLSers are unreasonably cheap and treat biglaw like a 2 or 3 year grind to extract as much cash as possible from their firms while living like monks. I myself spent over $3000 as a first year on rent.

But $5000 is a bad idea in my opinion. first years have no idea if they’ll like biglaw or be any good at it. Dropping $5K makes more sense after someone confirms they are a good associate who will be able to stick out a few years. Throw in any loans, and any salary advances that may need to be paid back, and the situation gets even bleaker

Different anon paying 4100. Do you think this is more reasonable as a first year?

[Res Ipsa Loquitter]

First year here who pays 5k in rent in the West Village. Ooop

Very high chance you end up regretting that one

Why? I know it's hard to believe from this board, but some people like fun and don't ruthlessly prioritize maximum efficiency in every facet of their life.

I agree with you that many TLSers are unreasonably cheap and treat biglaw like a 2 or 3 year grind to extract as much cash as possible from their firms while living like monks. I myself spent over $3000 as a first year on rent.

But $5000 is a bad idea in my opinion. first years have no idea if they’ll like biglaw or be any good at it. Dropping $5K makes more sense after someone confirms they are a good associate who will be able to stick out a few years. Throw in any loans, and any salary advances that may need to be paid back, and the situation gets even bleaker

Different anon paying 4100. Do you think this is more reasonable as a first year?

4100 is way better than 5000. Obviously lifestyles differ and some folks are homebodies. My experience, though, is high rent is super painful to pay and can be a bummer, especially since you would be on the hook for additional months even if you’re fired or quit.

[Anonymous User]

$2,800, Brooklyn Heights, 1 bed, rent stabilized.

[Anonymous User]

Checking in at about 4k/month for a place for myself. Seems this is quite common for out of town first years nowadays...