Back then it was possible to rent cheap in NYC without having to worry about bedbugs. I don't think I'd be willing to rent in w-burg again without paying for an inspection on any place I was serious about.
You can just look at the bedbug registry. No landlord is going to let you run your own bedbug inspection. As gross as the bedbug situation is in Williamsburg, I still think there's a worse roach problem.
There's just as big of a bedbug problem in Manhattan (if not worse) and it's not confined to cheap buildings. My office building got infested and it was primo real estate.
Finally, Williamsburg is no longer cheap unless you luck out and find an apartment-by-owner rental where the owner is senile. In a weird warping of reality, you can get a better deal in the Upper East Side (if you go over towards 1st/York.)
Dude, I run the Bedbug Registry. Hence the level of fear. Roaches are trivial to get rid of in comparison to bedbugs.
I agree that the problem is citywide. My intended point was that there is now a big new transaction cost to renting in NYC (and soon to renting in most cities).
There's just as big of a bedbug problem in Manhattan (if not worse) and it's not confined to cheap buildings. My office building got infested and it was primo real estate.
Finally, Williamsburg is no longer cheap unless you luck out and find an apartment-by-owner rental where the owner is senile. In a weird warping of reality, you can get a better deal in the Upper East Side (if you go over towards 1st/York.)