What 10 New Yorkers learned after calling it quits on their homes

By Leigh Kamping-Carder | February 13, 2015 - 9:59AM

Valentine's Day is a polarizing holiday, dividing up the world into those ashamed of being alone and those pressured to fulfill some romantic ideal. (OK, so maybe we can all agree that it's the worst.) But for New Yorkers, the emotional rollercoaster of finding, locking down, living in, and moving out of an apartment is arguably just as fraught as that of a love affair.

Last year, we spoke with almost a dozen New Yorkers who had each loved—and lost—an apartment in the city. Hearing their stories, which formed the basis of a biweekly column called “The One That Got Away,” we heard about the dealbreakers that can turn even the most sprawling luxury apartment into a metaphorical dungeon or, conversely, make a head-smackingly cheap rent too steep a price to pay. Sometimes a break-up is in order.

Below, what New Yorkers learned the hard way about leaving the apartments they loved:

A $50,000 buyout may sound like a sweet deal, but not when you consider the long-term ramifications.
Growing up means saying goodbye to your 6,000-square-foot Williamsburg loft.
Bed bugs will sour any relationship, especially the one with your super.
No rental discount is worth living next to (literal) crackheads.
A Staten Island “castle” is a prison if you share it with the wrong roommate.
And a landlord who takes her cues from “The Shining” will make even a bargain one-bedroom unlivable.
If your wife doesn’t like Yorkville, listen to her.
Sometimes, the rent just goes up, plain and simple.
You will find apartment love again. Probably after a major renovation.
If you get a chance to buy your rental? Take it!

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