give up my rent stabilized apartment?

Don't , unless you find another rent stab. The best part of the deal IMHO is not the rent discount but having the right to renew. It's the best arrangent when it comes to long term rentals (IMHO this decade is also gonna be a winner for rent stab versus owning).

It seems as though you should be able to find a rent-regulated unit in Harlem in your price range. Keep looking, while you hold on to your current apt.

You could live in doorman brand new studio in harlem for that range. A one bedroom would have to be a walk up.

please don't give up your current place until you fnd a new one...i did and have regretted it forever.

Stay until you MUST go. You can find out if your Landlord owns other properties...you may be able to get concessions, (although temporary), in another building. But stay put if you can.

I like the recommendation to tell your Landlord you are looking. If they have something that opens up that is suitable and will be $1200-1400 after the 20% vacancy increase, they might like the idea of renting that to you (they get a 20% increase) and renting your place to someone else (20% takes it to close to the $2k needed to de-stabilize).

Of course they might not have something else, or choose not to rent to you. But there is no downside to their knowing your desires since you don't have to move on it.

how did you find the place? from grandma or did you contact super directly..

re: your question depends on you, if youre fine with roommates stay but it seems rental concessions are disappearing and rents up from last yr..

now the other biggie... i myself would (did) gladly pay more to have my own space vs. a roommate.. loved the roomies and still meet up for drinks but living with someone gets tiring..

own privacy = mentally, emotionally liberating and you don't have to schedule your sexual escapades.. can walk around naked or in full couture for no reason without feeling silly.

Hmmm, it's a tough call.

I think under rent stabilization you have the right to sublet your stabilized apt for up to two years; after that you either have to re-occupy the apt or give up the lease to your subletter.

You could use this option to see if you think it's worth the extra expense of living on your own.

Check your lease. I think all rent stabilized places use pretty much the same boilerplate language in the lease. It will address your subletting rights somewhere in there.

Two years might be enough time to figure out what you prefer.

BTW, I think your rent range for Harlem is a little optimistic unless you are wiling to go into dicey areas of central Harlem. Those will not be like Williamsburg -- not in terms of safety nor in terms of having a decent grocery story nearby or other retail.

But I have not checked in awhile so by all means take a look.

thanks for the good ideas. any more thoughts would be very appreciated! i just had a great day in the prospect/crown heights area, so i think i'll be looking there too. from what i've seen, rents there seem a little lower than in harlem.
@hol4- it was actually just a craigslist find- i got lucky.

At the end of the day, it's about location, location, location. AND budget;-) The good thing about living in a rent stabilized apartment, is that they HAVE to adhere to certain parameters regrading how much they can raise the rent (usually not over 7% for a two year lease). In a regular rental, it's dependent on the rental market- So if the rental market gets inflated (it's currently doing very well, I hear...), then your rent can get raised to market value, whatever that is at the time. If you are not miserable where you are and can swing it, you may actually be saving money- vs. moving to a smaller place for $1200-$1400 and then seeing the rent go up beyond your comfort zone and then not having the option of having a roommate. The other good possibility is that if your landlord ever wants to get you out, they might have to buy you out...But I agree with the other posts on here... Don't move until and unless you have found a place you LOVE and which motivates you to move. (Just fyi, I am in a r.s. apartment as well, in Manhattan and have been looking to buy... and I still can't find anything I like as well as my little walk up! Golden handcuffs, as it were...)

>I think under rent stabilization you have the right to sublet your stabilized apt for up to two years; after that you either have to re-occupy the apt or give up the lease to your subletter.

Good luck.
When the subtenant decides not to pay anymore, what are you going to do?

can u see if u can fish some money from the landlord to leave? does he get to lift his rent stabilization if u go?

The one missing fact here is what the current market rent would be for your apt (if it was not RS). FYI, RS is not always less expensive

Regardless, it sounds like what you are paying now is above what you would want to pay somewhere else...

Original post was 20 months ago. Just saying...

I'd consider holding onto it until you can buy. Look into buying -- I know the downpayment is the major impediment. I'm a rent stabilized Manhattan tenant, and frankly rent stabilization has become a bit of a prison. I hate my place at this point (I didn't always, but I've been here too long), but it makes no sense to go to another rental (my rent is considerably less than yours). My landlord will buy me out (negotiations have been very cordial), but is not offering quite enough. I agree with what everyone says: Don't move till you find something else you love. And if you're willing to consider Crown Heights and Prospect Heights, you can likely find something, maybe even something to buy (I know, I know, the downpayment is an obstacle). A colleague who had to move when faced with a rent increase of more than $100 a month, found a large studio around Grand Army Plaza on the the edge of Park Slope for $1,400. He's moving this weekend. So there are places ...

People have made good points. Under rent stabilization, your increases are regulated (each year in June the Rent Guidelines Board meets amid much chaos and acrimony and determines what the rent increases will be for one and two year leases commencing in October, blah, blah). And you can stay there forever (there are some exceptions, but they're remote). That's why I would hesitate to move to a nostabilized rental. The colleague I referred to previously was in a place in the north Slope and had reasonable rent increases of $25 for a couple of years. Then, boom, unregulated, he suddenly faced an increase of more than $100/month. So it seems you should not move to an unregulated apt., and maybe consider buying.

Wetlands, would you love your apt again if you put some money into fixing it up? Or is it location/light/etc.?

I've considered doing that, and over the years I've made many improvements.

I'm also in a stabilized apartment and paying considerable less than you for a 1BR in Brooklyn Heights. I think the RE market is still so soft now that it might be a good time to buy. But my mortgage and maintenance would be higher than my rent. Is it worth it? How does someone approach their LL about buying them out? Finally, RS landlords can ask you to leave if a family member wants to live in the unit. So if your LL has any kids or relatives, you can be asked to leave at any time, without recourse. That's part of RS law. Also someone above mentioned you can sublet for up to two years, that's true, but you have to have a good reason. You can't just sublet because you want to try living somewhere else. My advice to you is to start looking, since it sounds like you've been thinking about this for 20 months.

I know friends who have " part time" room mates. Ie they are transitioning from having someone around all the time. Sometimes in life it is good to do things in gentler steps rather than rushing.
Like a flight attendant or someone who needs it during the week yet has somewhere else they go to during fri to mon. It is surprising the amount of people that cant live full time in the city. The room mate is happy about less rent and you get to live on your own more in the apt.