While we raise an eyebrow at that old saw about how it’s accepted New York etiquette to ask absolutely everyone you encounter what they pay in rent—sometimes that’s still super inappropriate!—we know for a fact that no matter who you’re talking to or how much of a lull you’re at in a conversation, you can always, always, always, bond with people over apartment (and roommate) horror stories. People are as greedy as they are unhinged, and there’s something particular about New York real estate that encourages humanity’s worst qualities to run rampant. No one comes out unscathed. You know, I thought my tussle with a roommate who illegally extended a lease in my name and tried to steal my security deposit was an all-time cautionary tale (we haven’t spoken in three years), until a friend was slashed in the face by an intruder after his landlord refused to put basic locks on his ground-floor apartment in Bushwick. It’s real bad out there.
(more…)