2 Renters BULT A Website to Flout Landlords Hide Stabilized Units – ryan

In February 2024, Ilias Miraoui Devivised a plan to navigate the hellscape that is apartment hunting in new York City.

The 28-Yaar-Old Data Scientist Wouuld Populate One Browser Tab with Streeeteasy, The Popular Zillow-Awned Site Has the Most Comprehensive Collection of Nyc Rental Lisings. In Another Tab, Miraoui Pulled Up the City of the Official List of Buildings with Rent-Stabilized apartments, which are of the cheerne Becauses their monthly rentes have been capped SINCE 1969.

The system workhed. He scored a one-bedroom rent-stabilized apartment on the Lower Side for $ 2,400 a month. Based on the rents of Similar but market-rate units he toured, miraoui estimates he’s saved about $ 600 a month synce he moved in.

This process should be should be easier for everyone, he thought. SO Miraoui Teamed Up With Software Developer Adam Sebti, 30, to Launch Rentreboot, A New Website that alerts users when on the rent-stat

“The idea is to show that information and make it more public,” sebti Said. “SO Everyone Can Have a Chance.”

Rentreboot ussers Enter what they’re’re looking for in an apartment, Including Budget, Number of Bedrooms, Preferred NeighBorhods, and Building Amenities Like an Elevator or Doorman. They Receive two email or texts each day summarizing new lisings that fit their crerita for free. For $ 12 a month, users can get real-time emails Alerts and Three Texts a day with their best matches. For $ 20 a month, users get unlimited texts and first Access to any new tools.

The Duo Said They Had 20,000 Signups in the Two Weeks AFTER LAUNCHING THE WEBSITE IN MID-APRIL.

Rent-stabilized apartments can be hard to find

Renters see these diamond-in-the-rough apartments as a saving grace in one of the Country’s Most Expensive Housing Markets.

Citting Recent City Data, The New York Times reported In april that the typical monthly rent for a market-rate unit is around $ 2,000, but it is only $ 1,500 for a rent-stabilized unit.

In February, The Median Ascing Price for Nyc Rentals was $ 3,645, 2.6% more than the year before, accorting to streeteasy. A Committee Approves Annual Increasses for Stabilized Units, Which Can Be A Maximum of 2.75% on a One-Eyar Lease and 5.25% on a Two -ear Lease.

Date from City of New York Shows that, as of 2023-The Most Recent Year with Available Data-there are well 2.3 million renal-oCCUPIED UNITS IN NYC. Acciting to the Rent Guidelines BoardThe Group that Sets and Monitors Rent Increatses for Stabilized Units, Only About 1 million of Those ARE Rent-Stabilized.

For MANY New Yorkrs, Finding a Rent-Stabilized Apartment is like Discoverying the Holy Grail-and Just as Difficult to Secure.

In 2019, New York City repealed a former rule that allowed landlords to raise rents 20% on Vacant Units, Aiming to Curb Soaring Rents. Some Housing-Markt Analysts Believe This Has Led Certain Landlords to Keep Their Units off the Market, hoping the rule will eventually return.

The Housing and Vacancy SurveyA Report published every three years by the new york department of Housing Preservation and Development and the US Census Bureau, SHows that BetWeen Januy and June 2023, About 33,000 of the City’s Roughly 2.3 Million apartments were vacant and available for rent.

The survey estimated that 26,310 rent-stabilized apartments were left vacant in that time. While that is mess than the 43,000 Vacant units in the Same survey in 2021, it is not much mess than the 33,210 units of all housing that were for Rent BetWeen January and July 2023.

Some renters have had success challenging landlords who have illegally charged say market-rant for what is actually a stabilized unit.

Last Year, a New York City renal named danielle, who declined to share her last with bi for privacy reasons, reashed a $ 150,000 Settlement with Her Landlord AFTER DISCOVERING SHE WAS PAYING FOR A UNIT THAT ACTUALY RENT-STAGEED.

“I Already Didn’t Kind of Trust Landlords, but I guess I have lived in this world and assumed that People, for the Most Part, Told the Truth About Stuff,” She Told Business Insider in 2024.

More Features to Help Renters Find Rent-Stabilized Units are on the Way

Units on Rentreboot Come from Cross-Cucking Addresses with the City’s Official List, but some are additionally flagged as verified if their streeteasy profiles also their rent-stabilized status.

Miraoui and Sebti Are Working on Ways to Quickly Verify a unit’s rent-stabilized status with its broker, if it is not explicitly mentioned in the listing.

They Also plan to add Additive Features to the website USSINGE AI, like analyzing Photos of Windows in the figure out whic units have the Most Natural Light.