How to find a no-fee or rent-stabilized apartment in New York City

NEW YORK CITY – The most stressful time of the year is coming up for New York City residents looking to move: peak rental season. 

With peak rental season arriving in June, bringing an increase to available apartment units, there are a few ways to score a no-fee apartment or a rent-stabilized unit.

How to find a rent-stabilized apartment in NYC

For those looking to find rent-stabilized apartments, the New York City-run website HPD Online is a great tool to discover and verify if an apartment is rent-stabilized. Potential renters and buyers can enter the address of a building and find a panel of information about the property before or after viewing it in person.

The Rent Guidelines Board website also has a list of several buildings that contain rent-stabilized apartments across all five boroughs. The list was last updated in August 2023 and is a great resource for renters eyeing a specific building. 

Another option to consider for a rent-stabilized apartment is applying for a New York City’s affordable housing lottery. The affordable housing lottery is run by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the Housing Development Corporation. Interested applicants must meet at least two requirements for a unit: the household income and size requirements.

Do no-fee apartments exist in NYC?

While it may seem like all apartments in the city come attached with a broker’s fee, there are a few ways to snag a no-fee apartment. On StreetEasy, users can check off the "no-fee only” box to populate only no-fee apartment options.

Responding directly to an apartment listing by an existing tenant also sometimes doesn’t come with a fee, due to taking over the previous tenant’s lease. Renters can also contact management companies directly, cutting out the in-house broker, and ask to rent an apartment in their buildings, according to StreetEasy.

Many management companies also place signs on their buildings where interested applicants can call and ask if there are any available apartment units, without incurring a broker's fee.