How much for an Manhattan studio? (New York, Union: middle-class, sublet, apartment)

[Voebe]

What would be an average low starting price for a studio apartment:

In central east Manhattan, East 20th-90th
Nice middle-class building, elevator, without fire escapes, but not a grand luxe place
Either no doorman, or maybe a low-key doorman, but not a grand staff with concierge and elevator man

Would a starting price be $1,500 a month? $1,800? $2,000? More?

[tpk-nyc]

They start around $1,800 and go up from there. At $1,500 it would have some serious issues, and certainly no doorman.

[mc33433]

An elevator and doorman increases the rent, and in my opinion is not needed, especially for a starter place in a decent neighborhood. Without that criteria, there are many affordable units.

[BearMM]

$1600-1800 for a small studio, elevator, no doorman

But that is for Upper East Side, where there are some newer buildings (1970s-1980s).

[loratliff]

Originally Posted by Voebe

Nice middle-class building, elevator, without fire escapes, but not a grand luxe place

Don't virtually all pre-war buildings, elevator or not, have fire escapes? Most of them aren't new enough to have fire-safe stairwells. Even my 16-story pre-war building in Gramercy Park had a fire escape in the back.

[sheaosaurus]

Anything south of 59th street with a doorman your looking at $1900 and above, all though most doorman can go from $2200 and in the Union Square area I have seen some for $2600. On the Upper East Side, you will be looking around $2200, and maybe around $1800 with an elevator and no doorman. Why don't you want fire escape though? It would be horrible if there was a fire and you were in the back or the building on a high floor and a fire truck ladder can't get to you there.
If you are paying $1500 for a studio, you'll be on the UES in a small space that realtors will describe as cozy.

[gr8west]

You are unlikely to find something under 2G, and if you do, something would wrong with the place, or the rent, or the landlord, etc. A modest clean, with necessary equipment 500+sq ft studio with those requirements would run closer to $2500/month in upper east area.

[Voebe]

Thanks for the input. And for loratliff, no, nice prewar buildings that I've seen don't have fire escapes.

[loratliff]

Originally Posted by Voebe

Thanks for the input. And for loratliff, no, nice prewar buildings that I've seen don't have fire escapes.

That you're seeing. They still very well could have them in the back of the building, as mine did.

(FWIW, my studio at Lexington and 22nd was in a pre-war doorman building and was $1,950 per month. It was about 400 sq. ft.)

[tpk-nyc]

I think what you really mean is a tenement (which were built as low-income, multiple-family housing, often in red brick with fires escapes in front), not necessarily pre-war. Looks can be deceiving. Some tenements have been thoroughly renovated and are very nice inside. Much nicer that a lot of 60s/70s-era white-brick apartment buildings.

In a Manhattan, it’s the inside that counts. When I first moved to New York I sublet a post-war studio (white-brick with elevator and doorman) on Park Avenue South. Some people would find the building highly desirable. I found it utterly homogenous and dull. The floors were linoleum tile and the apartment had no architectural detail whatsoever.