New York Habitat Blog

Harlem, a neighborhood of Manhattan, is located in the northern section of the island and is especially well adapted to bed and breakfast rentals because of its many historic brownstone apartments which offer unique, well-designed room configurations for this type of stay.

Harlem has asymmetric boundaries, but is largely bounded by 145th Street to the north, the East River to the east, the Hudson River to the west and a variable line from 96th Street in the east to 125th Street in the west as its southern border.

The neighborhood is diverse in culture with the historic Apollo Theater on 125th Street to Columbia University along Broadway. Parkland is readily accessible in Harlem with Riverside Park to the west, Central Park to the south, and Morningside and Mt. Morris parks within the neighborhood.

Harlem is one of the last remaining neighborhoods in Manhattan where the side streets are lined with beautiful brownstone apartment buildings. These were largely built during the mid to late 19th century. Many of these brownstones have been meticulously restored to their former glory, including amazing architectural details. Along the avenues there are many new condo developments being built to supplement the housing stock.

Harlem is quite convenient to midtown and downtown Manhattan with four subway lines traversing the neighborhood. Additionally, there is a Metro-North commuter rail stop at 125th Street and Lexington Avenue and cross-town buses along 125th Street which offer service to Queens and The Bronx.

There are many restaurants scattered throughout this neighborhood. If you have a favorite eatery or attraction in Harlem, feel free to add a comment to our blog.

If you are looking for a Bed and Breakfast in Harlem, consider NY-7608 in a restored townhouse near Mt. Morris Park, or NY-11527, a room in a doorman building close to Columbia University and Morningside Park.

When searching for an accommodation in New York, remember to consider the options New York Habitat offers in Harlem.

New York is famous for its conventions, which are largely held at the Jacob Javits Center along the western end of midtown. Because of the location of the Javits Center, finding a hotel room close by can be difficult. However, New York Habitat offers apartments scattered throughout the city, so there are often many choices of accommodations that are more convenient and offer more flexibility than the typical hotel room.

The 2007 American International Toy Fair occurs from February 11th to 14th and features 1,500 of the top manufacturers, distributors, importers and sales agents of toys from over 30 different countries. The fair is considered the largest toy event in the western hemisphere and attracts about 25,000 attendees. Unfortunately for those of us not involved in the industry, the fair is only open to people within the trade. If you are interested, visit http://www.toyfairny.com/ to see if you qualify to attend.

Remember, when making your plans for The American International Toy Fair — whether in 2007 or beyond — to consider renting an accommodation with New York Habitat. Some convenient properties include a one-bedroom townhouse apartment in West Chelsea just south of the Javits Center (ny-12237) and a three-bedroom apartment west of Times Square (ny-10971). Either way, you will find that the apartments are closer to the convention center then almost every hotel in New York City.

Last week we discussed the Rugby World Cup games in Marseilles and this week we continue our trip to Montpellier, where we will see an additional four matches played. New York Habitat offers a selection of apartments and villas in this area.

Montpellier is located in the Languedoc region and serves as its capital city. It is known as a youthful town with three major universities and six smaller schools. There are an estimated 70,000 students in the city, which equates to 25% of the population. It is located just inland from the Mediterranean Sea, therefore offering easy access to beaches and water activities.

Some of the town’s major attractions include a main shopping district with department stores and luxury shops. Festivals throughout the year include a theater festival (Le Printemps des Comédiens), a dance festival and two opera houses: the Opera Berlioz and the Opéra Comédie.

Montpellier is one of the smaller venues to host games during the World Cup of Rugby. La Mosson stadium seats 33,650 people for Rugby events. For the 2007 Rugby World Championship, the stadium will be hosting four matches, all in the first round of competition. The contests include: the United States vs. Tonga or Korea on September 12th, Samoa vs. Tonga or Korea on September 16th, Australia vs. Fiji on September 23rd, and South Africa vs. the United States on September 30th.

New York Habitat is one of the top providers of furnished apartments and villas in the South of France, including Montpellier. Some of the choices include a studio to the south of Montpellier for 540 euros per week (PR-724) and a two-bedroom apartment west of the city center (PR-297).

In conjunction with the World Cup of Rugby, New York Habitat is offering 10% off of our agency fee for anyone renting an apartment through our service that is attending the World Cup of Rugby. To receive the discount, just mention the code “rugby07” and when you complete your booking include a photocopy of a ticket to one World Cup rugby game you are attending.

When making plans to come to France for the World Cup of Rugby, remember that we offer apartments close to the stadiums in Marseilles, Saint Denis, Paris and Montpellier.

New York Habitat’s listing agent, Brian Lowenberg, shares his ideas on how to make your apartment attractive to potential customers. He has visited over 1,500 apartments since he has worked at New York Habitat and can offer useful advice about how to prepare your apartment before listing it with us for the first time. He has worked with our rental agents to discuss what owners can do to make their apartments friendlier to incoming clients and offers this advice to all of the owners that he visits.

One of the most important tips Brian can offer is to clear the clutter before listing your apartment. When preparing your apartment to list with New York Habitat, take some time to clean space out in the closets for the guest, organize the clutter so that the apartment is pleasing for the guests and don’t forget to dust those areas which are often forgotten. Once you are successful at creating an inviting space, you will find that clients are more likely to request your apartment when they see it on the website. Remember that it is important to prepare the apartment, just like it will be when the client arrives, for the listing agent’s visit so the pictures taken during the visit offer a realistic look into your space. Our clients find that the best accommodations, whether it’s in New York, London, Paris or the South of France, have been well thought out for their stay. Thinking about the little details makes all the difference.  

So, when you set up an appointment for photographs to be taken at your apartment, prepare the apartment just as you would before a client were to arrive. Both clients and agents will appreciate the quality photographs that result from the little extra effort and you will find that clients are asking for your apartment because it is somewhere that they would like to stay.

Be proud of your accommodation and take the time to make it one of New York Habitat’s special apartments in London, Paris, the South of France or New York.

With the World Cup of Rugby coming to France every part of France is preparing to host the world’s best rugby teams.

New York Habitat offers apartments in the South of France and Paris, both of which will feature matches during the Rugby World Cup.One of the cities that we offer apartments in is Marseilles, where you can enjoy the Mediterranean atmosphere of France’s second largest city.

Marseilles is one of the major venues to host games during the World Cup of Rugby. Its Velodrome stadium is one of the largest in France, seating over 59,500 people for Rugby events. For the 2007 Rugby World Championship the stadium will be hosting 6 matches. In the first round there are four contests including: Italy vs. New Zealand on September 8th, Italy vs. Romania on September 12th, Argentina vs. Namibia on September 22nd and the home team, France, facing Georgia on September 30th. In the quarterfinals, Marseilles will have two matches which will include the top two teams in divisions A and B.

New York Habitat is one of the top providers of furnished apartment and villas in the South of France, including Marseilles. We offer several accommodations in Marseilles, including a one bedroom apartment for 675 euros per week (PR-441) and a two-bedroom apartment where either a single bedroom can be rented or the whole apartment (PR-234).

In conjunction with the World Cup of Rugby, New York Habitat is offering 10% off of our agency fee for anyone renting an apartment through our service that is attending the World Cup of Rugby. To receive the discount, just mention the code (rugby07) and when you complete your booking include a photocopy of a ticket to one rugby game that you are attending during the World Cup. So, when making plans to come to France for the World Cup of Rugby, remember that we offer apartments close to the stadiums in Marseilles, Saint Denis, Paris and Montpellier.