how comprehensive is streeteasy?

I say maybe half, and almost none of "by owner." You really have to look on trulia, craigslist, NYT, nybits...

what major brokers don't allow se to post their listings?

that little huh? i guess i was hoping streeteasy pulls listings from those places as well. thanks.

The way it works seems to be proprietary info, but I get the impression that SE pulls data from some intermediate outfit (REBNY maybe?) to which brokers do or don't belong. Seems to be mostly small firms that aren't here. Then again, there's Cantonnet & Cantonnet, whose only listing is the owners' own apartment at 5 E 75th. Maybe they're hobbyist brokers.

Half? Are you kidding? Elliman and Corcoran alone are more than half of Manhattan, and StreetEasy has both.

thats a good point anonilicious. i wonder who decides if it is listed on streeteasy? are all corcoran listings here just because some are? maybe its up to each broker.

there are a few uptown brokerages that i don't believe SE gets. New Heights Realty and AN Shell. That might have changed since I have stopped looking for uptown places.

I thought the brokers had to pay for their listings to appear here, is that not the case?

thats a good question uesbandit. i know OLR (on line residential) charges a flat fee- amount determined by size of brokerage-then brokers can list as many properties as they want.

Elliman and Corcoran are not half, but even if they were, I personally have frequently sent emails to Matt at Streeateasy to correct listing from those two (expired, wrong info, etc.) so its not always accurate. For rentals, pleny of for rent by owner or large landlord do not get posted here.

where's best to look for rentals?

rental listings are marketed way more inconsistently because of how quickly (theoretically) they get done and how much less money is at stake. nytimes.com is a start but only listings with address's.

rentals = nybits.com. I don't think they cover sales.

craiglist is ok for rentals if you ONLY look at apartments by owner.

I really dislike nybits.com. It's not at all useful for large apartments.
I would not rule out Craigslist for rent by owner listings.