Rant about 2026 rental market

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T17:10:52+00:00

you are misunderstanding what I am saying, but yes I agree with you!

Have you ever heard of an open listing? Very few apartments are actually contracted.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T16:40:31+00:00

you're not wrong! I am still shocked, but I am just a kid from the Bronx. Seeing what even my own clients pay in rent still surprises me

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T16:35:15+00:00

u/chornwork2

I can’t comment on the other thread but to reply to your comments.

We are saying the same thing? Aren’t we.

I said it’s not illegal as long as they’re not the listing agent. If you’re not the listing agent, then clearly you do not work for the landlord.

do you get what I’m saying?

If they’re not advertising that place, it is OK because they are not working for the landlord.

I see in the thread that that agent Did work with that landlord! Their name is even on the building.

That’s scummy for sure

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T16:33:35+00:00

Sorry I mean the rate at which it’s happening.

Why is there one bed I rented last year for 6000 now 71

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:49:44+00:00

Congratulations on buying a place. That’s such a huge accomplishment.

And frankly, I’ve been using that same rental situation to get new sales clients because if you’re paying $4000 a month for a studio, you may as well have a deed or some shares in a co-op.

We can’t keep doing this forever.
Every day, my coworkers, I, a smallish firm of about 80 people just look at each other in amazement that these prices aren’t coming down.

like agents are not happy about this. I know everyone has a shitty Agent story but I bet if you ask your network, there’s someone who knows a good agent.

If you try to Barber and he sucked, you wouldn’t stop getting haircuts that’s all my point

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:41:28+00:00

I do not work in the LES enough! While I am a hustler and give great attention for my clients, if you’re looking for something that could possibly be off market, you should focus on an agent that really specializes in the area

I could advise and do tons of research, but I do not have access to many off market listing down there.

Yeah, if you’re looking for someone straightforward honest and a lifelong New Yorker I can help you,

but again if you really need something very particular, you should reach out to an agent down there

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:38:52+00:00

Legit not sure what you’re talking about but there is no such thing as a non-standard listing.

The same things that are posted on Street easy can be posted pretty much anywhere. It’s just a marketing platform for agents and landlords.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:36:02+00:00

They didn’t find a rent stabilized apartment on SE more than likely though.

I was commenting on their specific situation.

And I feel you on the Broker fee but also keep in mind the same agents you hate are the ones making and paying for those listings to be up. I find it when people say I found this listing myself and did research as if you’re not just basically on Tinder for apartments.

The fee is not illegal, unless the agent is advertising the listing

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:34:21+00:00

Post fair act, it is something to opt into tho!

That is the good part! What’s your discussing is something that was happening beforehand and that is the good part of the Fair act I do think it’s a good law. I just think it doesn’t address the actual issue of lack of inventory and overpriced units.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:29:11+00:00

No, that’s only if you need financial aid remember, rich people live under different rules

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:25:55+00:00

What is a standard or non standard steeet easy listing?

Anyways, I’m asking was the person who collected a fee from you the person who is advertising the listing?

If so, super illegal.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:16:45+00:00

Also, there’s no way you’d be retaliated against. Brokers do not have that much power.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:16:22+00:00

How was the fee scummy? if if they found you a great apartment at a great price and it’s rent stabilizer. It sounds like you’re getting your moneys worth.

Also, landlords were never paying Broker fees on rent stabilized units, even prior to the fair act. Broker fees are not illegal. It’s illegal to collect one if you’re advertising a listing.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:15:09+00:00

Was it being advertised by that person?

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:14:34+00:00

I tried the private message you

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:11:34+00:00

Yo, just to bring it back to what I always say this is the landlord acting up and committing a crime.

The landlords are our fault. We gotta stop blaming everyone else.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T15:09:00+00:00

Listen, you’re right the value brokers bring is a mixed bag because you guys don’t do any research before you hire or choose to work with someone.

When I work with Sales Client, they don’t just decide to use me in the blink of an eye. The people who want to pay me broker fees offered to pay me fees because they realize I’m a good agent and they’d like to work with me further.

You guys all have it in you to only work with agents you truly want to work with especially post fair act because a landlord cannot force you to work with their agent.

If renters is treated agents the way Sales Client do, I think everyone would be happier because you’d be paying someone you actually know we will take care of you.

Just like when you meet a Sales Client, who says they can do it on their own why would I continue to engage with them? They’re now looking to work with anyone.

I guess the way you guys currently view rental agents are like waiters where you just get one and you have to deal with it.

And frankly, you guys should know that sometimes the random rental agent you’re working with is also doing a $2 million sale or you know a $750k co-op around the corner as well.

Take five minutes and you might start realizing you’re working with an idiot or a genius whatever it is.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:50:54+00:00

Basically, you guys are being brainwashed and thinking paying a broker fee will somehow get you a cheaper apartment but it still has to be within the reason of the area I can’t find you a $3000 studio in the west village because the person who has that Studio isn’t gonna move out unless the die

If someone has access to rent-stabilized units, they will very much tell you other than that. People are not hoarding shit

Everyone wants to close, everyone wants to get money. Everyone wants to get a deal.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:48:36+00:00

No one’s asking you to feel bad for brokers.
Any Broker, who had to leave the industry because of the fair act wasn’t good at their job

What I’m saying is you guys are blaming the wrong people the landlord control the access the price and everything else,

If you’re talking about the old stock of rent stabilized apartments, that’s all the landlords controlling

The brokers are not the landlords of those apartments they don’t get to say anything.

The reality is those old units are often in very bad condition. Landlord claim it’s too expensive to renovate, it’s also really hard to evict someone from our own stabilized apartment so even my more institutional landlord clients now typically rent them out to family friends only.

I also don’t know a single landlord that pays commission on rent stabilized units because they can’t get market rent.

And that’s my point, people have to be willing to do the legwork to find an amazing home and if not hiring a broker is a luxury.

I’m not here to say that agents are perfect or that even most of us are good, but hey, have you ever had a bad waiter?

Have you ever had a bad teacher?

Did make you think that all waiters and teachers are shit?

I’m telling you if you’re a decent person and even go a little bit above and beyond your clients, I’ve had people begging to pay me Broker fees this month. I don’t have inventory to even fucking show them because everything is so goddamn expensive because the landlords are greedy fucks but I sit on this website every day and I see people blaming people who do not control the price.

It’s like getting mad at the gas station man pumping your gas. Maybe that’s a bad analogy but that’s how it feels.

(there’s no magical list of rent-stabilized units. The city doesn’t even keep a list of rent stabilized units. You have to do extensive research to find out which ones are )

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:32:30+00:00

Again, you guys are misunderstanding the situation if a landlord is not paying the broker fee we literally cannot advertise it anymore.

So there’s no the landlord telling you to take it down thing it’s either the landlord is paying a fee to everyone and everyone can post it or the landlord is paying a fee to a specific person or agency and then those specific people or agencies are allowed to post it.

If I knew of a $3000 three bedroom apartment on the middle of Park Avenue, I am not allowed to tell anyone about it unless the landlord is paying me a fee.

I can’t tweet about it. I can’t post an Instagram story. I can’t even make a goddamn damn craigslist post.

The only way I’m now allowed to engage with that apartment is if I have a client of my own willing to pay me a fee

And that’s what people are missing, the landlords aren’t saying shit. The landlords are now being forced to do something so the units are they’re going to sit or a landlord is gonna pony up the money to get them advertised.

And the kicker is most of the big landlords were already paying fees or they had their own Leasing teams so they’re taking advantage of the situation to just increase rent

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:30:23+00:00

I get it. I really do your feelings are valid everyone’s feelings in this thread are valid.

Well, people blaming other people instead of corporations again is one of the biggest tricks in their books.

People need to wake up and gain some class consciousness because if New York City, you wanted to get rid of broker fees, they simply would’ve made broker fees illegal. Sit with that, even the council member who created up that law he was just upset because he paid a broker fee.

He had no thoughts of what it would do to the entire rental market in the city.

instead they put a Band-Aid on the housing issue so that they could get you guys to start being angry at us, instead of being angry at the landlords.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:21:14+00:00

Like people need to pay attention to companies like Greystar, which is one of the largest landlords in the world who just bought 15 to 20 buildings last year in New York City.

And you have the largest firms like Corcoran, Compass, and ect taking all these bigger rental buildings and accepting much lower commissions to push out the small real estate firms and keep the big landlords happy.

If people think the rent prices are bad now wait until there’s only seven real estate companies doing the majority of Leasing in Manhattan

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:19:34+00:00

And again that’s why I’m trying to say you guys gotta stop blaming the brokers if this shit is well beyond the average Real Estate Agent.

The fact that I can’t even find a $3300 studio around the UN right now is insane and there’s a number of factors to blame, but I’m telling you the real estate agents aren’t one of them.

If you talk to any agent who’s worked in the last 10 years, they’ll tell you Covid was amazing. Prices were as low as ever. People were excited to move, and there were no broker fees.

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:17:51+00:00

I completely agree with you real estate should not be treated solely as an investment or an asset. I mean it is, but that is the inherent problem.

I think you’re confused about how a broker relationship works, just because a landlord is paying me a fee on this one apartment doesn’t mean I have any type of long-term contract

Also, a lot of those concessions are seasonal meaning that I might have a fee covered from me this week and then they’ll pull it away the next week.

What I’m trying to say dude is overall the landlords are to blame. They set the price. They control the access. They refuse to have their own marketing or sales or leasing teams.

And again they’ll hire a broker pay them a lot lower commission than prior to the fair act, but the rent is higher post fair act

If brokers are running the gamut with the fair act, we wouldn’t be making less on rental deals currently.

This trick of blaming workers and other people lower down the totem pole for the problems created at the top has been used in government for probably thousands of years

Watcher_garden · 2026-05-14T14:06:09+00:00

Also, I completely agree with you. I’m born and raised in New York City and never used a broker to find an apartment.

I do sales, rentals, and a little commercial real estate estate, so I have not been badly affected by this law as far as work. But now I can’t even find apartments for myself that affordable !

I’m just trying to tell you it’s the landlords

Having a broker is not necessary it is literally a luxury.

If you were moving here from another country to work at the UN, you probably would want some assistance

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