NYC Apartment
 

We are planning a trip to NYC for Thanksgiving 2009 for our family. There will be 7-8 of us, and we would prefer to stay together, preferably in an apartment, and as inexpensively as possible. I have found this link to apartment rentals http://www.apartmentsnycity.com/index.htm
Since there are a lot of scams out there, just wanted to check to see if anyone has used this agency before, and what your experience was. We can also use points for the Courtyard Jersey City, but will have to rent a second room there to accomodate us. Of course, we prefer to stay on Manhattan, if possible, but renting 2 hotel rooms is out of the question econonmically. Thanks for any help you can provide!

It is my understanding that most NYC apartment renetals are illegal. That is the word over at TripAdvisor where this subject come up more often than it does here. They say you can check with the housing authority or something like that.

I should clarify that I mean to say most short-term vacation apt rentals are illegal. Sorry about that.

There's an extensive, recent thread on this very topic. Click on my name to find the thread.

As vjpblovesitaly points out, virtually all short-term apartment rentals in NYC are illegal, but some condo bylaws allow short-term rentals. It's very likely that the apartments listed on this Web site are condos.

Although there are honest broker/renters out there, you will have no legal recourse if something goes wrong and the apartment doesn't work out. That doesn't mean this particular web site is not reliable, though I don't know this agency.

Be aware that Thanksgiving week is the most expensive week of the entire year in NYC.

Saw the other thread warning of the illegality of apt rentals in NYC and had to laugh - it is truly a law honored in the breach.
I have rented apartments numerous times in NYC and never had a problem, whether using craigslist or an agency such as www.metro-home.com.

It depends on the building. If it's a small rental building with fairly transient tenants you may well get away with it.

But, if it's a co-op or condo with involved neighbors, they can make difficulty.