Vacation rentals in New York City,

[OPERACAT]

I have been told that it is illegal to rent an Apartment in NYC under 30 days, and yet there is quite a lot on offer from various sites, any advice or experience ?

 

[drron]

Most are illegal-just because they are on well known apartment rental site such as VRBO does not make them legal.You will almost certainly get some answering saying they rented an apartment in NYC and had no problems.That still does not make them legal.Do you want to be the one who is there when the authorities act and come back to your apartment with you luggage on the street and locks changed?Because that has happened.Check out the Trip Advisor forum on NYC.Some good advice-
Renting a vacation apartment - a collection of posts - New York City Message Board - TripAdvisor

Google Derryn Hinch and new york apartments-he fell for one.
Found it for you-
A Definite Affinity - HumanHeadline.com.au

 

[OPERACAT]

Thank you, I have had a reply from an owner who is prepared to rent for twenty days (we require) but make it appear as thirty, sounds a bit fishy to me, but am interested in others experiences,

 

[mhossen]

I've rented out apartments in NYC on 3 occasions, all for less than 30 days. A bit of government red tape getting in the way of people making the best use of housing is cough. I doubt anything will happen unless someone dobs the owner in.

As I said, I've never had a problem with the city or any other tenants/ building workers.

 

[smit0847]

I faced this exact risk a year ago. I didn't want to stay in a hotel in NYC (they are so expensive and tiny) so I read up about private apartment rentals.

Yes it's illegal.

Yes you may be thrown out on the street during your stay.

That being said, there are lots of private rentals in NYC - I picked one of the many places on airbnb and had a terrific experience. I knew I could be kicked out at any time but took the risk and it was worth it. The single most important thing to remember if you dont want to be kicked out is to ensure no-one else in that building realises you are holiday renting - that is how people get caught, when the doorman/other residents realise an apartment in their building is being used like a hotel - they get annoyed from a security perspective, dob you in and you get kicked out. This means minimal communication with the doormen or anyone else in the building (I was putting on a NYC accent within a few days of staying there to blend in). Know the name of the person who lets the apartment and if anyone asks you are a relative/close friend visiting that person for a short time, and that you are NOT sub-letting. It's not illegal to let someone stay with you for free, it is to sub-let to a stranger. No-one asked but I had the story ready if they did.

It's risky. For some people it works and for some people it doesn't. If you don't like risks stay in a hotel, pay more for less room and relax. If you want a bit of an adventure and want to live like a local hire a private apartment and take the risk it may not work out. It worked for me (was one of the best parts of the trip) and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again, but that's the sort of person I am.

 

[ButFli]

This means minimal communication with the doormen or anyone else in the building (I was putting on a NYC accent within a few days of staying there to blend in). Know the name of the person who lets the apartment and if anyone asks you are a relative/close friend visiting that person for a short time, and that you are NOT sub-letting.

That sort of behaviour would raise alarm bells to me. It might work if you were the only person the apartment was ever rented out to and the legitimate tenant was there the rest of the time. But what you'll find is that the apartment is rented out to one person after another. Any doorman will notice that. Also, why would a New Yorker (with a fake accent) visit a close friend or relative in their own city? It all sounds very sus. And once someone has a suspicion it will only take a few minutes on Google to get confirmation.

Really, I think the only thing protecting you is that if someone in the building was going to make a report, they probably would have done it already. The chance of your stay being the straw that broke the camel's back would be low. Unless you are one of the first few people to holiday-rent the apartment you should be okay.

 

[jamesatfish]

Plenty of other ways to keep under the radar if you're concerned, including sticking to non-doorman apartments or renting north of 82nd in a low-rise / brownstone where there are only a couple of apartments in each building. It's not too hard to find a building with only 2 or 3 apartments for short term rent, and often you'll find the owner living in one of the apartments and renting out the others so there's a pretty low chance of being 'dobbed in'.

As ButFli mentioned, if you rent from a reputable website and pick an apartment with good long-term reviews then there's probably a good chance you'll enjoy your stay with no disruptions.

 

[nickykim]

It can be done - be careful. Only pay via secure system. Check the person you are paying exists before you transfer any funds.

I did it, my daughter and I stayed in a basement studio in Chelsea for 3 weeks in 2010. Spent way to much but had a ball.

NKim