New York Habitat Blog

Kent Avenue has been the forefront for new development in Brooklyn with its location extending from Clinton Hill north into Williamsburg along the East River and then into Greenpoint.

It has offered many unused industrial buildings and vacant lots which have been prime candidates for conversion to apartment complexes. Today we will look at a few buildings in this area where New York Habitat has furnished rentals.

Schaffer Landing:

Situated at the southwestern corner of Williamsburg, this two-building complex was opened in 2006 and features a mix of rental and condo units. The building is located on Kent Avenue and offers spectacular views of the Manhattan skyline, the East River and the Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges.

The complex features a large outdoor public space, a direct stop on the water taxi and a gym within the building. The closest subways are the J,M,Z train at Marcy Avenue and the L train at Bedford Avenue.

The blog “Curbed” has looked at some of the other properties in the area that are preparing for construction, including Is Williamsburg’s Edge Property on the Market? and Toll Brothers Show Their Glass on Kent Avenue.

New York Habitat currently has a three-bedroom apartment at this location (NY-12281).

970 Kent Avenue:

Located in Clinton Hill, this renovated building features large, loft-like spaces with plenty of light and easy access to the G train. The building features a gym, a children’s playroom and a large shared garden.

New York Habitat is currently featuring a one-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in this building in Clinton Hill (NY-12278).

Greenpoint Avenue

This building is another renovated space, formerly the Greenpoint post office branch. The space has been completely gutted and features large one-bedroom, two-bedroom and four-bedroom lofts.

The building is located near the G train at Greenpoint and Manhattan Avenue Station, which offers easy connections to the 7,E,V trains in Long Island City to reach Midtown Manhattan in about 15 minutes.

New York Habitat features several units in the complex including a one bedroom loft in Greenpoint (NY-11599), this two bedroom loft in Greenpoint (NY-12073) and a four bedroom loft in Greenpoint (NY-11890).

To learn more about the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, take a look at our other blog posts on Park Slope, Ft. Greene/Clinton Hill, and New York in Song – Living in Brooklyn.

New York Habitat would be glad to work with you to find the perfect vacation accommodation, furnished apartment rental or roommate share in the Brooklyn building of your choice.

Listing an apartment with New York Habitat is a painless process and it is FREE.

New York Habitat specializes in furnished accommodations and roommate shares in New York, Paris, London and the South of France.

If you are interested in listing an apartment, the best way to begin the process is to fill out a listing registration form or to call us (see phone numbers below).

When you are filling out this form, make sure to include your name, best contact phone number and e-mail address as well as the type of apartment you would like to list and where the apartment is located.

Once you have submitted the form, we will generally contact you within one business day to get more details about the apartment you would like to list. Before you hear back from us, you might want to check out the following sections of our website for more information:

• Frequently Asked Questions Page
• Price Range Table for New York, London, Paris and The South of France
• Company Profile (PDF)

When the listing agent from New York Habitat calls, you should expect that they will ask you several questions about your apartment to help determine if it qualifies to be included in our listings. When we determine that the apartment can be listed, the agent will then schedule a time to visit your apartment so that we can take a detailed set of photographs, get a full written description and even chart a floor plan for some apartments. Before the agent comes you may want to look over some tips on how to prepare your apartment.

Either before or when the agent comes to visit the apartment, they will bring a listing agreement which needs to be signed in order to be included in New York Habitat’s listings. All New York Habitat listings are non-exclusive.

When the listing agent returns to the office, they will enter all of the information into our database and website. Normally your apartment will be on the site within one business day after the visit.

Once the apartment is listed, you will then begin to hear from agents with potential clients.

So, if you are thinking of listing your furnished apartment, vacation accommodation, bed and breakfast, or roommate share, remember to consider New York Habitat. We have worked with over 12,000 apartments in New York, 3,500 in Paris, 800 in The South of France and 500 in London.

Thank you in advance for considering New York Habitat.

Phone numbers to contact us to list your apartment or property:

• (+1) 212.255.8018 for New York
• (+33) 42.36.78.70 for Paris
• (+44) 020.79.53.3996 for London
• (+33) 04.42.20.01.53 for The South of France

Harlem has an increasing number of renovated apartments available in its neighborhoods and, in conjunction, many of its classical landmark buildings are being restored as well.

On February 18th, 2007 Christopher Gray of The New York Times wrote an article titled “A Harlem Landmark in All but Name” that detailed the reconstruction of the Renaissance Theater and Casino. New York Habitat works with several building owners in that area to offer their newly restored apartments and rooms for rent.

Reasons to choose a Harlem accommodation:

New York Habitat’s clients increasingly have been looking for furnished apartments in the Harlem area because of its easy commute times to midtown via the 1,2,3,A,B,C,D,4,5 and 6 trains, its location near Columbia University and its more reasonably priced, larger apartment offerings. Commutes to midtown range from 10 minutes via express trains to 30 minutes via some local trains. For more information on the neighborhood, see some of our other blog entries, including Harlem Bed and Breakfasts and New York In Song - “Uptown – The New Harlem”.

The furnished rental market in Harlem:

Typical prices in the neighborhood for furnished rentals are $1,300 to $1,400 a month for studios, $1,600 to $2,000 for one-bedroom apartments and $2,400 to $3,000 for two-bedroom apartments. Roommate share accommodations are typically in the range of $550 to $950. Vacation rentals in Harlem offer a unique opportunity because unlike other neighborhoods there is a higher proportion of large, family-sized apartments and even entire townhouses. The typical price for a studio or a one-bedroom apartment is between $150 and $200 a night while prices for larger apartments are typically between $200 and $400 per night depending on the size.

Some of the choices to consider include NY-11895, a two-bedroom apartment at 150th Street just a short walk from the A,D express trains; (NY-12220) A studio vacation rental in a renovated townhouse on a landmark block near the Renaissance Theater, and NY-10527, a room rental just a few blocks from Central Park and a short walk to Columbia University .

The Renaissance Theater:

The Renaissance Theater is located at 137th Street and Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. (Seventh Avenue). The current owners are looking into converting the building — which is presently unused — into a new apartment building and retaining and restoring the casino section. The restored casino will likely be used as a community meeting place if the plans are approved.

It is a good idea to consider the apartment offerings in the area of the Renaissance Theater as the neighborhood continues to develop. Remember the apartments and roommate shares in Harlem for their value, convenience, location and unique properties during your search for the perfect accommodation.

Have you been searching for the perfect apartment for your stay in New York, Paris, London or the South of France? Wondering what to do now?

Here are the two best ways to begin the booking process:

1. You can search our website and find apartments that meet your specific needs. The website includes details about each apartment we have available, the price and the dates of availability.
Once you find something interesting, either fill out a request form or call us directly at 1 (212) 255-8018 to submit your request. When making a request make sure to include the apartment reference number, your best contact phone number and e-mail address as well as the dates of your stay.

2. If you are not sure which apartment would best suit your needs, our team is well acquainted with our apartments and would be able to help determine which property is a good fit.
Also, if you don’t want to search the website for the perfect apartment, we would be happy to look for something for you; just let us know the dates that you will be coming, your budget, the area that you would like to stay and any other important details, and an agent will get back to you with the best solutions as soon as possible.

Once you have contacted New York Habitat, we will get in touch with the owner to confirm that the owner will accept your booking. As soon as we receive confirmation, we will prepare the booking documents and either e-mail or fax them to you.
Once you receive the documents, get them back to us as quickly as possible because the New York, London, Paris and South of France markets are especially competitive and require quick responses to the owners to ensure that the booking is completed.

Remember when looking for an accommodation in New York, London, Paris or the South of France, New York Habitat is perfectly suited to helping you find the ideal place to stay.

Find more apartment rental tips: Frequently Asked Questions, when to reserve an apartment, RSS contribution to apartment search

London is known as one of the great cities in the world for its architecture, great subway system and its parks. As for the latter, most people are familiar with the famous Hyde Park located in central London, but far fewer have visited the much larger and more spectacular Kew Royal Botanic Gardens located in the Richmond section of Western London.

Kew Gardens is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which incorporates thousands of species of plants into its 300-acre property. The land includes a frontage on the Thames River at the north and gently sloping hills in the southern section. Some of the highlights on the property are the glass houses, which contain unique species from around the world. There are walking trails around the park that lead to the different buildings and museums and showcase the variety of native plants on the grounds. Another highlight is the Cedar Vista, which offers an unobstructed view of the Thames River though a forest of cedar trees from the giant Pagoda at the southern corner of the park. If you have a tip about your favorite places in Kew Gardens, feel free to post a comment below.

If you are interested in finding an apartment near Kew Gardens, consider accommodations in the luxurious Richmond area where beautiful single-family homes and multi-family row houses can be found. Some of New York Habitat’s offerings in the area include a one-bedroom apartment near Wimbledon (LN-404) and a three-bedroom apartment (LN-405) that can sleep eight people. Kew Gardens is convenient to downtown via the District Line or Silver Link Railway to the Kew Gardens stop. The journey form the city center is about 30 to 45 minutes.

So, on your next journey to London, take a ride to one of the world’s greatest botanic gardens, Kew Gardens, and remember to check out New York Habitat for all of your accommodation needs in the Kew Gardens area.

New York Habitat’s final stop on its Rugby World Cup tour is Saint Denis, a suburb outside of Paris. Saint Denis’ stadium, Stade de France, is the largest venue for the World Cup, seating as many as 80,000 people. The stadium, because of its size and proximity to Paris, will host seven games, including the final match. New York Habitat offers a selection of apartments in Paris, which is easily accessible to Saint Denis by the RER train to the Stade de France Saint Denis station.

The town of Saint Denis is about 100,00 people and is a former industrial suburb of Paris, though it has become a popular destination for commuters looking for a residence just outside the city. Saint Denis is served by the RER (line D), which connects to the Gare du Nord, Gare du Lyon and Chatelet Les Halles stations in Paris. The trip from the city center takes about 10 minutes.

Stade du France opened in the 1990s as a replacement for the Parc des Princes in Paris. It is considered the national stadium where important football (soccor), rugby and other sporting events are played. For the 2007 Rugby World Championship, the stadium will be hosting seven matches, three in the first round of competition, one quarterfinal match, both semifinal matches and the championship. The contests include: France vs. Argentina on September 7th, England vs. South Africa on September 14th, France vs. Ireland on September 21st, a quarterfinal match on October 7th, semifinal matches on October 13th and 14th, and the championship on October 20.

In conjunction with the World Cup of Rugby, New York Habitat is offering 10% off our agency fee for anyone renting an apartment through our service that is attending the event. 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 of Rugby game you are attending.

When making plans to come to France for the World Cup of Rugby, keep in mind that we offer apartments close to the stadiums in Marseilles, Montpelier, Saint Denis and Paris as well. For matches in Saint Denis, remember that apartments in Paris are only 15-20 minutes away by train.

In 2006, New York Housing costs rose by 6.5% as the supply in the market remained tight with an average vacancy rate between 1% and 2%. The 6.5% increase in housing costs was the largest since 1989 and was caused by several factors, including the low level of vacancy, the low percentage of new constructions that were rental units, and the fact that New York City’s population continues to grow. By 2030, Mayor Bloomberg expects that the population in New York will grow by at least a million people.

New York Habitat is well aware of the tight housing market and constantly monitors pricing trends to ensure that apartment rentals in New York are offered at appropriate rates. Visit our pricing page, which details the current average prices for apartment rentals in New York. Furthermore, when traveling to New York, remember to consider other neighborhoods, plan in advance for the greatest selection and consider all options to find the best apartment to suit your needs.