You work all day to get paid so that you can turn around and give half your paycheck to some landlord. And for what? All so that months later you can get panicky about the idea that he’s gonna jack your rent up by $500 and leave you to fend for your own out there? There’s another option out there for you, for the brave and those that aren’t put off by discrimination agains the Youngs. Despite what you may have heard otherwise, you can buy an apartment in New York City without being a Russian oligarch. The Observer found someone who’s only 22 but is part of New York’s propertied class, and she recommends it for everyone.Well, maybe not everyone. But if you’re already paying out the wazoo for rent like Polly Mosendnz was, why not take that rent money and put it towards a mortgage and maintenance fees. Mosendz had $50,000 between savings and a little help from family, and figured that would be enough to help her put money down on her first apartment. Which it kind of was, except that brokers didn’t seem too keen on dealing with someone so young who insisted on buying.
So you’ll need to lie about your age, grit your teeth as brokers tell you to try renting and then you get to the fun part: getting a mortgage! Here’s a section of the story that should make you cry into your morning coffee:
Initially, the mortgage broker was thrilled to deal with me. Until they found out how much, or in their eyes how little, money I needed. In Manhattan, a mortgage of $150,000 or less is shockingly small. Chase recommended I “seek personal resources” for the amount. Instead, I sought Citi Bank. Approved and awaiting my commitment letter, Citi booted me to the end of the line, forcing me to wait 8-12 weeks (as opposed to the usual 30 days) for a commitment letter because of my “little mortgage.”
Good luck getting a reasonable mortgage for your reasonable piece of property, sucker! In actuality, it all worked out for Polly, who got a place in Greenwich Village, which is great. 20somethings who don’t have trust funds should buy apartments if they’re able to! It’s still a little depressing that you need fifty grand, because Jesus, who has that kind of money and brokers won’t even take your money seriously. But if you’ve got a little nest egg, keep Polly’s story in mind next time your landlord suggests doubling your rent is completely reasonable.
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So, as an addendum to the post, I too have a little bit of a nest egg because I got hit by a speeding bag of money in the form of a car. But it's not $50,000, it's less, and seeing the kinds of hoops she had to jump through despite having almost twice as much money as me just makes me want to give up on everything.
She either had a much bigger "nest egg" then this article states, or wealthy parents footing part of the bill, because even the smallest shit hole in the West Village would cold a hell of a lot more than 150,000!
This story is a pack of lies. Go on ACRIS and find out that she bought her small place for well over $300k. The downpayment is a lie, what she bought at the price is a lie. Unbelievable that no one at NYO fact checks this and this passes for journalism. Ridiculous.
she got a 50k nest egg from her family she claimed she made while working retail... she is somehow debt free after going to a university that is 40k a year, along with $2,100 a year in rent .. then she goes on to say she bought this 250K apt on her own when according to new york public record , she bought the apt at $345k with another buyer on the contract! she isn't normal,she is just another lying entitled brat who got money from mommy and daddy and tried to make us believe she did it all.. if that happened sure, but don't try to portray yourself like you are "normal" like the rest of us