Apartment rentals in New York are illegal for less than 30 days. There are lots of scams on the Internet so beware.

Well for the most part, renting an apartment for under a month is illegal in NYC so I suggest you consider looking at apartment like hotels like Radio City Apartments.

New York State Law prohibits the rentals of 30 days or less in most residential apartment buildings. Many of the apartment you see advertised on the internet fall into this category.

One of the reasons this law was enacted, is that the short term rentals in residential apartment buildings are not in compliance with the stricter fire safety laws that are in effect for hotels.

If you rent an apartment that is not a legal short term rental, you will have no refund and no legal remedy if there is a problem. Tenants who rent out their apartments in violation of the law are generally violating their lease and may face eviction. In addition, some of the listings you see on the internet are scams.

There are legal apartment hotels in NYC. Choose wisely. some have great web sales depending on when your visit will be

You can look for people who own their individual townhouse and are willing to rent out a room (but there aren't many and finding one will be difficult).

Otherwise renting for less than 30 days is illegal.

For suite look at Radio City Apts, the Beacon Hotel and the Affinia Group - all of which have numerous suites.

Be aware that many listings online are scams. Several posters here have come to NYC to find the place they rented did not exist. (there were several articles about this in the papers over the last two years.)

And several weeks ago 2 young girls came to my building looking for the apt they "rented" - which didn't exist - and for which they had paid a large amount. Our super ended up putting them in a cab to the police station (really to hook them up with travelers aid - although they were convinced the police would find the real apartment and/or the scammer.)

Fabio -

Just noticed your name. The young girls who came looking for an apartment in my building were from Italy and had booked online from there - so the crime actually occurred in Italy. The person called "George" required full payment in advance - and did not provide anything but an email address.

If you consider looking for one of the very few legal apartments make sure that you have a specific address before booking, that you have the full name, address and landline phone of the person you are renting from, that you use google earth to make sure the building is as claimed (one person rented an apartment in a place that was a community garden rather than a house)and that you have the name of the person IN the house that will be responsible for any problems. Also require references and do a search for both the address and name of the building as well as the web site to search for complaints.

If in doubt - do NOT risk losing all your funds.

thanks a lot to all of you !!

Yes I am full aware of scams and crime, that's why I made this post, just to avoid them ! A colleague of mine had the same bad experience some years ago, she sent the money to a certain Wanda Hernandez and the apartment did not exist.
Probably I used the wrong words. I meant holiday apartment for short stays. I see there are many of them on the web like vacationrental.com newyorkstay.com feelnyc.com

but I have no idea whether or not they are enough reliable..

Try a hotel if you want to avoid scams and crime. "This post" won't do the trick.

Short-term rentals (yes, for holidays ) are ILLEGAL in NYC. To be safe you need to use an apartment hotel - like Radio City Apts, Beacon Hotel or Affinia hotels.

If you search VERY carefully you may find the owner of a multi-million $ townhouse who is willing to rent off rooms short-term to help cover the mortgage - but there are not very many of these (as you would imagine).

Doing anything else you find on the web is just asking to be taken.

These scams happen all the time - and some companies specialize in scamming european tourists who don't know the rules. There have been articles in the local newspapers - one doorman said he had people coming looking for apartments they rented that didn't exist numerous times - almost all europeans.

Unless you are willing to risk all of your money don;t do this.

Fabio, I'm confused. You say you want to avoid scams, yet you still ask about a website that is specifically illegal rentals -- scams if you will. In case you aren't listening -- private apartments cannot be rented for less than 30 days in New York -- that includes what you are calling "holiday apartments for short stays". Period. Your only "non scam" solution is to rent an apartment from a legal apartment/hotel like Affinia and others listed above.

But there ARE apartments in townhouses that rent for less than 30 days..the ones where the owner lives in the building. I'm not going to delve into this yet again, but they are out there on sites like Flipkey.com, and Homeaway.com.

For one reason or another, there seem to be quite a few in the newly gentrified areas of Harlem, including one owned by friends of mine. This area seems to appeal more to European tourists than Americans.

To Fabio, I would suggest looking on the website mentioned for places in Harlem, if you are willing to stay in that neighborhood. And yes, there are many scams out there, so it might be simpler to just book a hotel room..there are many hotel ideas offered on this forum.

If Fabio wants to pursue the apartment route, maybe some of us can offer out thoughts on places that he finds online..at least we can, hopefully, steer him away from the most obvious scams.

I am all for underscoring the fact that the large majority of these rentals are not legal and that it is very easy to fall victim to a scam. But we also have to allow for the fact that a small minority of advertised short-term rentals ARE legal, and that there are some visitors who do not seem to care if the place they rent is legal or not.

I guess it's semantics. But to me if someone is advertising an apartment that is being rented illegally, then it IS a scam. No?

The problem in this thread is that the OP has specifically said he doesn't want a scam. So in my humble opinion that means he doesn't want an illegal apartment. Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions here, but that's honestly the way I read his posts -- that he really doesn't understand that most of those "many" apartments he is looking at on the websites ARE illegal and therefore ARE scams. Even if you get away with renting an illegal apartment, you've still been scammed if you rented it thinking it was legal to do so.

I agree with NeoPatrick's take on this. Also, ekscrunchy just because you know a business you believe is legal that's in Harlem and they use Flipkey and Homeaway, that doesn't mean that Fabio or anyone else can figure out which ones are or are not legal. Those sites don't vet their listings any better than VRBO, do they? Looking at Harlem doesn't really make it more or less likely that its a legal situation either.

If someone comes here, seems understandably confused by some of the sites and is concerned about no scams, no illegal rentals, I think the responsible thing to do is say, yes there may be some that are legal, but it would be impractical (in the opinion of many people here) to do all the research (check listings, check building codes, licenses etc, have someone visit the apartment etc) So the responses often come under the category of other helpful ideas--looking for hotel in lesser known neighborhoods, the names of specific budget hotels people like, etc.

Here's a hotel with kitchens in the rooms that gets very good reviews - http://www.staytimessquare.com/accommodations.html

"•Kitchen with full size stainless steel refrigerator (and icemaker!),dishwasher, convection microwave, two burner stove top, dishes and cutlery, toaster and full size coffee maker"

There are several apartment style hotels, such as Radio City Apartments, Affinia properties, and The Beacon. Completely legal.

ok now I better got all your points about legal and illegal/scams. thanks.

I will concentrate on these Radio City Apartments, Affinia and The Beacon which are legal or on hotels.

Yes, I think there is some confusion for a lot if travelers, Euroeans in articuar. We don't have very many apartotes r vacation rentas in Nc. That's just not the case in most s vacation destinations but is the case in most US cities on the east coast, unlike in most of Europe.

Fabio -

All of the places you just listed ARE hotels. Some may be called apts - but they really are hotels. The Affinia hotels were originally apartment buildings that were bought by a hotel chain that went through registration and modification as a legal hotel - with all of the additional safety and fire regulations that entails - and they offer hotel services with lobbies and desk staff. (Not like renting an illegal sublet in a building full of long-term legal tenants.)

we used homeaway.com and got a great Apt not far from Times Square. It was such a great experience! the owner was super lovely and very helpful and even offered us to store our luggage in his studio up the road before our flight (he was a photographer)

just read the reviews and ask lots of questions...

ac291 - but it was illegal, could easily have been a scam. Why advocate that the OP risk their entire hotel budget on one of the hundreds of scams?

nytraveler -

If ac291 rented from the OWNER it wasn't illegal or a scam, correct? Assuming it was in fact the owner and not a tenant, of course.

Just because you "own" it doesn't mean you can sublet it. I own my apartment in a co-op building. By law I can't rent it for less than 30 days. By the proprietary lease I signed when I purchased, I cannot sublet without the approval of the board of directors. The owners mentioned above who can rent rooms are those with sole ownership of an entire building.

Maybe we should have a "sticky" thread addressing this perennial issue.

There are growing numbers of scams and fraud nowadays so we should all be careful. I have read the some like these issues on Travel Explosion as well i think a few days back..keep your guards up all the time folks.

Cranachin: "If ac291 rented from the OWNER it wasn't illegal or a scam, correct?"

Not correct . . .

Not sure if he was the owner of the apt - it was a small building with only 4 apts....we defn didnt exchange monies until we got there and after many emails/communication and even a phone call once we landed.

He had many reviews on his apt and it all worked well for us!

To make it clear - subletting an apartment for less than 30 days is illegal in a co-op, a condo and a landlord owned building. If it is a private townhouse with a single owner tna they choose to rent a room they can do so.

Anything else is illegal and there is a good chance it is a scam.

If it was a zoned rental building - yes, it is ILLEGAL for the owner to allow rentals less than 30 days. That is taking a rental apartment off the market for the much higher rates the owner can get from short-term rentals (perhaps $5000 or more per month instead of the legal rental which may well be less than half that) - but without meeting any of the safety or fire regulations for a transient building (and probably cheating the city of taxes and even abusing special tax benefits they have on the building).

People can talk aruond in circles all they want. And they cansay nothing bad happened.

But it is illegal.
In many cases there have been outright scams - never mind apts not as described or livable once the renter arrived.
And if there is a problem the renter has no recourse - even credit cards can;t help since the transaction is illegal.

Thank you nytraveler,

for posting this information, but those who want to break the law and justify it will keep on posting. Sad but true.

And ac291, Sorry that you are so proud that you were able to do something that is obviously illegal. If you come back to NYC, please don't do it again.

Good topic that I'm glad I read as I had NO idea that renting an apt in the city was illegal. I'm assuming Bed and Breakfasts in private homes fall into the legal category then?

Yea, I suppose so. But how many "private homes" do you know of in New York City?-- private apartments or condos within buildings don't count.

There are some long-established B&Bs that are still technically illegal because they have not installed security and safety measures necessary to make them legal hotels. It's a sticky situation here. There are almost no B&Bs to begin with in NYC because of the cost and density of the typical housing stock here.

The crux of the law is that property owners cannot charge money for someone to stay less than 30 days unless they have a proper hotel license. In almost all cases it's illegal, whether you own the apartment or building or not. And it's not at all clear in the law that rooms in private homes are exempt. It's the CHARGING that's the issue, not the fact that someone is staying for less than 30 days or even that the owner is doing the renting out.

This is why we always recommend people not do this even though it's a money-saver in many cases and even though people still do it all the time.

If everything goes fine, then great, but in those cases where everything doesn't go fine, or where there is a problem, then the person doing the renting has no legal recourse since they are committing and inherently illegal act to begin with. A credit card company or the city don't help you out when you are already breaking the law. Nor would you be covered by travel insurance since you are breaking the law. And if you are shelling out hundreds or thousands of dollars, it's only sane to have some kind of protection.

Ah, it makes sense now.

From your postings I think someone should inform Trip Advisor of the law as there are 99 BandB's and another 157 apartments, townhouses etc. listed, and not to mention the 1,733 'Trusted New York Vacation Rentals' on their site. I guess that's what makes it confusing to the rest of us non-New Yorkers.

TripAdvisor does not care about legal or illegal, just as they do not care if posts for places and restaurants come from the owners and are totally fake.

It IS confusing, Finecheapboxofwine! That's why we post so many responses to this hot-button topic.
Most people don't realize the number of different factors (justified or not) that would make these kinds of rentals illegal. And many people seem to think that everything online in a site they recognize has been vetted for these kinds of conflicts. Spokespeople for AirBNB and other sites have repeatedly gone on record saying that while they expect their listees to follow the law, they do not check listings to see if they comply.

Other legal apartment hotels include Best Western Hospitality, San Carlos, Kimberly, Salisbury. There's a London based agency www.apartments2book.com that has contracts with many of these legal apartment hotels and can sometimes offer better prices. Teh Eaconhotel.comis one of the most popular of these with kids. It's on teh upper wests ide near Central Park.

NYC and Air BnB are in a constant state of conflict over this. The city keeps demanding the Air BnB warn potential renters. Air BnB keeps saying they want to work with the city - but refuse to put anyhting on their site - and just keep lobbying to change the law - which ain't gonna happen.

Air BnB, believe me, has come up against nothing as difficult to deal with as either the New York Tenant Association, the Landlords Association or the Rent Stabilization Board. (These groups are each incredibly vociferous and powerful - and together Air BnB is better off taking on North Korea. So it will remain a stand off - with potential subletters caught in the middle.)

I think the apartment hotel is the way to go anyway. There is someone at the desk if you have problems with a key, a/c etc. and you don't have to mess with the waiting, wonder and worry if your reservation is legit.

For a couple of weeks we rented a NYC apartment before DH took his bar exam up in Albany. Didn't know it was illegal but what a nice oxymoron!

Ah, forgot to add about the hotel apartments...plus, they are legal!

I did well to post this issue ! Now I know much much more than before, or better, I see I did not know anything before! Thank you again !

I could not imagine or believe that almost all NY private apartments listed on many websites are rented illegally, despite they have the owner email address, pictures etc etc...

I still wonder how these people can still do business illegally on the web where everybody can see it and nobody stop them. Ok, possible scams/crime for me could be those acting under a nickname with fake apartment description/pictures etc... who then once taken the money the surprise that the apartment does not exist. But for all the others where apartments really exists, how is it possible ? No controls ?

By the way, to be on the safe side, already booked now a hotel at a very expensive rate, being that the NYE week and wishing to be close to Times Square (a few minutes walking distance) anyway I will re-check those legal solution you suggested, should I find something cheaper I will cancel the hotel without penalties and rebook somewhere else.

GRAZIE !!

Fabio, the law changed recently. Legal rentals that have been renting legally for years (decades) are now not legal - not because of the individual accomodation but because of a change in the law.

The law is NOT that recent.

But the government has more important legal issues to worry about - so they can;t spend their lived shutting down sites advertising illegal rentals. Just like they can't police all of the scams on Craig's list - it has to be caveat emptor.

And I would not stay right near Ties Square on NYE. There will be more than a million people in the street - no local transit at all and very strict police/security of every person trying to get into the area. Much better to stay in another part of the city that night - unless you want to pay for a room with a view at $1500 per night. Also, restaurants in the area usually have single seating "parties" at hugely inflated areas.

And being part of the crowd is not what you want to do - unless you are late teens/early 20s and don't mind standing in the cold (possibly sleet or snow) for 8 hours waiting for the ball to drop.

Fabio, nytraveler hates Times Square and does not recognize that Times Square on New Year's Eve is an iconic destination. Have fun.

well my son will be 18 soon and my daughter 12 ! They wish to be in the crowd, of course, I cannot change it. I would avoid it, as nytraveler says, but you know..... probably this is the last trip together with the older son and should the younger daughter or wife give up, they can still walk back to the near hotel before midnight.

I always love it when one person tells someone else what they do not want to do or where they do not want to stay.
Like someone telling someone else going to Paris -- do not stay in the city at all, the countryside is so much prettier, or telling someone to avoid staying in San Francisco, just stay by the airport and take the train back and forth to avoid the crowds and walking the hills, or avoid staying in the iconic Times Square of New York, find a leafy residential street instead. It's interesting that some people seem to think they know better than a poster what they will like, even when many of them are only going to New York BECAUSE it's incredibly busy, bustling, noisy, and crowded.

A note about the ball drop and Times Square on New Year's Eve.

Actually, they cannot walk back to the hotel if they get tired, particularly if it's close to Times Square. At some point the police simply won't allow them to leave or it will be too crowded to leave. In order to watch the ball drop in Times Square, one must be in place by 3pm, and then there's no way out, no bathrooms, or anything. You "enjoy" the experience until approximately 12:15, and then everyone departs. All the streets in and around Times Square and the subways are blocked off to pedestrians and cars. No one moves.

This year, I noticed that people were lined up since 9am, but it's only after around 3pm that you're not allowed to get out and use the bathroom any longer.

"Fabio, the law changed recently. Legal rentals that have been renting legally for years (decades) are now not legal - not because of the individual accomodation but because of a change in the law."

True, but not really true. Even though the law regarding these rentals has come up in recent years, for most apartments that were sublet before the law, the occupant/owner of the apartment was violating his or her lease.

All renters, co-op apartment owners, and condominium apartment owners sign a lease of some kind when the move in. These leases always include a clause that the apartment cannot be sublet to anyone (short- or long-term) without the permission or approval of the landlord (for renters) or board of directors (for co-ops and condos). This approval process can involve interviews and credit checks. It is not a simple process. Condos have been known to be less stringent about subletting and so you may find some exceptions.

Therefore, even years ago before the recent law, a person who sublet for short or long term without the approval of the landlord or board could be ejected from the building.

There are two governing bodies in question: the state and the building's owner/board.

Here's an article (dated 4/27/12) that may be interesing reading for Fabio -

Armed with a new state law, the city has spent the past year cracking down on the growing industry of short-term rentals; since the law took effect last May, nearly 1,900 notices of violation have been issued at hundreds of residential buildings.

“The issue of illegal hotels is one that’s been a mounting problem in the city over the last several years,” said John Feinblatt, chief policy adviser to the mayor, pointing to a tenfold increase in complaints about them since 2006, to about 1,000 last year.

The new law made it illegal to rent out apartments in residential buildings for under 30 days. Owners of an apartment or a town house may still rent out one or two rooms, provided that they live in the home and everyone has access to common areas like the kitchen. Illegal hotels found by the city included small rental buildings, condos and town houses, and many of them were hiding in plain sight.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/28/nyregion/city-closes-illegal-hotels-and-puts-pressure-on-b-and-bs.html?_r=0

"well my son will be 18 soon and my daughter 12 ! They wish to be in the crowd, of course, I cannot change it. I would avoid it, as nytraveler says, but you know..... probably this is the last trip together with the older son and should the younger daughter or wife give up, they can still walk back to the near hotel before midnight."

Sorry but I'd really REALLY reconsider this. The 18 yo can do what he wants . . . But no, none of you can walk back to the hotel. In fact you can't move almost at all. You will be in sort of corrals and fenced in.

http://gonyc.about.com/od/newyearseve/tp/ball_drop_tips.htm

Note these specifics:

>>Be aware that you won't be able to return to "your spot" if you need to leave to eat, use a bathroom, or move for any other reason.<<

>>You should also be prepared with snacks, drinks (no alcoholic beverages are permitted), and diversions. If you arrive in Times Square at 4 p.m., there are still 8 long hours until the ball drops at midnight. Bags/backpacks are not allowed, so wearing a coat with plenty of pockets is a good idea.<<

>>The police will periodically "force" different areas to crowd in,<<

I wouldn't takea12 yo for sure.

Like Doug says,
"In order to watch the ball drop in Times Square, one must be in place by 3pm, and then there's no way out, no bathrooms, or anything. You "enjoy" the experience until approximately 12:15, and then everyone departs. All the streets in and around Times Square and the subways are blocked off to pedestrians and cars. No one moves."

Fabio,
That sounds like my worst nightmare and my advice to you... you're the grownup here. Find the next best alternative and celebrate NYE in another spot. (IMHO). I can't imagine that NYC isn't brimming with excitement all over the city on that night. For me it boils down to lack of facilities in the way of toilets. I can't imagine standing in one spot for 9 hours and then with no toilet! How will you manage the disappointment and argument that could happen if one of you has to leave to do your business?

If you and the 18 year old want to go - on your own heads be it. But for a 12 year old - esp one who may not be very tall - this can be so crowded as to be frightening. And standing there for 8 hours in below freezing temps and possible sleet or snow - is to going to be fun.

IMHO much better to have dinner on the upper east or west side and then go to Central Park at midnight for the fireworks. There will still be large crowds - but in an open area - and easier to get back to one's hotel.

Sorry - is NOT going to be fun.

While this is nothing I'd ever do, kids do attend the ball drop in Times Square, and it's particularly popular with young adults, so I don't think its out of the question. It's a once in a lifetime experience for a lot of folks, who should just go into the event with the reality in mind and be prepared for it, perhaps with hand warmers and adult diapers.

Fabio, we stayed at the affinia dumont - close enough to times square and a very convenient location. I think it's in the murray hill neighborhood? Can't remember. Anyway, it was a nice set up and the longer you stay, the more "discount" you get. If you keep checking the site, they may have better deals closer to your arrival dates.

http://www.affinia.com/New-York-City-Hotel.aspx?name=Affinia-Dumont

I forgot to say, we had a gorgeous view of the empire state building from our room.