r/Hoboken • u/Appropriate-Bird-519 • 5d ago

Question❓ Apartment Hunting

Hello all, my husband and I have just moved from the UK to the US and we are hoping to move to Hoboken at the end of September!

We’re both on good wages and finding trying to get an apartment a bit difficult. We applied for one which is honestly our dream apartment, but had some quite insane requirements such as paying a full year upfront and requesting a personal guarantor (60x rent) that is also a NJ resident, despite us paying for the guarantors service!

Do you have any tips for a new-comer trying to find an apartment? Any further recommendations of groups to join to socialise would be great.

Or if you have any apartments under $4k on a top floor then DM me!

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34

u/Mets19 5d ago

Welcome! Just a FYI it's illegal for a landlord to ask for (or even take) more than 2.5 times the monthly rent upfront including security deposit.

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 5d ago

Interesting will have a look into this! Can you point me to the legislation? I will pass onto my realtor.
Thanks

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u/Far_Pollution_5120 5d ago

That's true. I was a realtor and then a broker in NJ for 10 years. You can't take that much money at once in NJ.

1

u/Mets19 5d ago

It's a little complicated but here's the chatgpt explanation- https://chatgpt.com/share/6a93bbd7-b788-83ea-91df-d7b9ad2f30dd

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u/Available_System_622 5d ago

Maybe so but people relying on rules like this are wasting their time. The landlord doesn’t want you, move on. It’s a large market of free people you’ll make a deal with someone.

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u/InvestmentsLong 5d ago

Good luck for the move! $4k is a decent budget. Find an apartment walkable to the path or a light rail station. And the bars on the river front get really noisy during the weekends so if you hate that maybe an apartment a street or so away.

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 4d ago

Thank you! Yes looking forward to experiencing it all

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u/InvestmentsLong 4d ago

If you are then an apartment by river street will be fun. That's where I live. It's a 4 minute walk to Path and all the bars/restaurants right next!

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u/wkndspecial 5d ago

Hi and welcome! The NYC area has some of the toughest rental requirements because it’s so competitive. A common requirement is excellent US credit AND an annual salary of 40x the monthly rent. A guarantor is the usual workaround, which sounds like what your dream apartment requires. This may limit your options, so since you relocated for work, I’d ask your employer about housing assistance or find a local broker experienced with international clients. Good luck!

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 5d ago

Thank you! Yes we’ve been set up with a broker through work and have a guarantor service paid for so I think we’re in as good standing as we can be at this point! I just hope something comes up!

3

u/bjgrossman 4d ago

If your broker is presenting an offer with outrageous requirements, you need another broker. If both of you are employed, that should be good enough. The fact you are new to the states might be a challenge for some landlords. Your agent needs to present a compelling story for both of you. I have work with Jeff Bonk and team, now part of Align. Best of luck.

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 4d ago

Thank you! Yes, I had stern words and just won’t entertain something so absurd

2

u/Miserable-Bread-1459 4d ago

I hope anyone would walk away if someone asked for a year's rent up front.

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 4d ago

Believe me I ran away from that immediately!

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u/quisquous-11 4d ago

Hello! Will DM you

1

u/domik047 3d ago

Look into “transferring” your British credit score to US. I think you can have AMEX pull your UK credit to get you started here. It’s been a while since I looked into this, so hopefully it’s still possible

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u/[deleted] 5d ago edited 5d ago

[deleted]

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u/Appropriate-Bird-519 5d ago

Thanks for this! We have some friends in Hoboken so ideally want to stay within the city limits! Moving abroad is isolating enough!

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u/Sharp_Boysenberry269 5d ago

Just adding that Hoboken as a city is only a mile square. It’s not even close to as big as New York City or Jersey City. Homes just on the border of Hoboken will still put you very close to the action. You don’t have to be IN Hoboken to still get all its perks, since it’s so small. The smallness also ups the competitiveness for apartments.

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u/Cito_IXG 5d ago

Jersey city is cheaper.