My Experience Leasing An Apartment On St. Marks

As NYU students, we’re some of the only students who can freely rent apartments all over the city while in college. The summer before sophomore year, I moved into an apartment on St. Marks Place. I was ecstatic, nervous, and also slightly disgusted—one whiff of the overwhelming trash, various drugs, and mysterious splotches that litter the streets will tell all—but the experience thus far has been beyond rewarding. 

Driven by the fear of not finding an apartment, my roommate and I toured apartments in late April only to come up with nothing. My suggestion is to look for apartments at least the month before your move-in date. Unless you want to rent early, find reliable subletters, entrust them enough not to wreck the apartment, and work out the logistics, then have faith in New York City’s real estate market. Everyone’s moving during the summer—you’ll find an apartment. Just beware of the horrific heat waves that hit the city. 

As anyone else would say, StreetEasy.com will be your go-to site for apartments. Everyone I know found their apartment there, myself included. The best units are usually posted at the beginning of each month. If you’re looking during the summer, the July 4th weekend may be most rewarding, as people are busy celebrating the holiday. 

My roommate and I debated whether we wanted to trade renovated appliances for location (with a budget of 4.5k a month, we couldn’t find both). Though initially hesitant to run down appliances, I’ve loved living on St. Marks. The streets are so alive with culture, and some of my favorite food spots are just across from where I live (hello, Mango, Mango!). Most buildings on this street have fire escapes, which has become my favorite feature of my apartment. Sitting on my fire escape truly feels like the full New York City experience.   

As a native New Yorker, the street noise does not irritate me. The occasional honking and yells wake me, but nothing too bothersome. Since there’s so much happening here, it’s also relatively safe. Living near campus is also a huge plus; I can leave my apartment 10 minutes before class and still make it early. 

Choose an apartment you and your possible roommate(s) would be happy to live in. You don’t need to love it. Once you find that apartment, fill out an application immediately. The market moves fast—if you don’t lock down a place right away, someone else will gladly steal it. 

I had many concerns when moving to St. Marks—the biggest being the possibility of a bug and rodent issue. Luckily, my apartment building is relatively well-maintained. However, one of the most important tips I can give is to deep-clean and de-bug your apartment, especially if you’re living in a pre-war building. I suggest buying sealant, covering all cracks between the walls and floors, covering any near the windows, etc. If you’re extra paranoid about roaches, buy boric acid—a godly invention I purchased mine at my local hardware store. With a touch of this powder, roaches immediately die. Spread this powder along the cracks of your walls, push it in, and then seal it in. You can also put an extra layer along your walls outside the sealant. I followed these steps when I moved into my apartment and haven’t had any bug issues since. 

In terms of cleanliness, buy bleach powder! I recommend Comet. Throw this onto your shower walls, let it sit for a bit, rinse, scrub, and do it again. Orange water was sliding off my shower—a result of water mold and years of sanitary neglect. Every few months at night, cover your drains with bleach, pour a little bit of boiling water, and let the bleach slowly drip down the pipes. It’ll kill any nasty bugs in there. 

It’s important to keep in mind that we’re all students. I couldn’t afford to buy new furniture, nor did I have any room to store it after my lease ended. Thus, allow me to introduce Facebook Marketplace, the best product Facebook has ever made. From Marketplace, I got a gorgeous set of plates and bowls for free, a dining table and chairs for $25, a trash can for $10—these are surprisingly expensive—and a nearly new Ninja Air Fryer for $30. 

Don’t discount free furniture on the street either. There’s a plethora of perfectly usable furniture if you’re willing to do a deep clean of your findings. I found a perfectly conditioned bar table two blocks from my place, a green cart from my apartment building’s basement, and—my favorite—a lantern lamp with three shelves attached. For the lamp, I swapped out the light bulb for a multi-colored one and connected it to my Alexa for an accessible and warm light source. 

Although we only signed a one-year lease, I wanted to make my room feel as special and home-like as possible. Many prefer not to, but I highly recommend personalizing your space. It’s much worth the time and effort! Being NYU students, we get a $50 printing credit each semester. Many don’t use up the entire credit, but I suggest taking advantage of it to print some posters or pictures. My room is still a work in progress—I’m always adding a train ticket from a memorable trip or random pictures I love—but it’s become a space I genuinely love and feel safe in. That feeling is incomparable.  

Nearing the end of our lease, I’m trying to soak up as much of the apartment as possible. I eat breakfast on my fire escape almost every day (being in the heart of St. Marks makes for an entertaining and lively view), cook as much as I can, and spend most of my free time either in my apartment or neighborhood. I’m extremely grateful that my roommate and I had chosen to live in an off-campus apartment—it’s been the highlight of my sophomore year.