Air Conditioners

I need my a/c. Even though I was raised in temperate southern California I blast the a/c if the weather rises above 73 degrees. As such I knew that I'd be running into some issues in my move to NYC. If you haven't already noticed most buildings in the city do not have central a/c, garbage disposals, or dishwashers. Sometimes you get lucky with a dishwasher. I decided that I would need to have window units installed ASAP. When we arrived from our red eye flight and signed our lease, we dropped our dog off in our empty HOT apartment, picked up our a/c's and then went to IKEA to buy all our furniture. Even though we had a secure place to sleep and I had had all our belongings arrive the day before us via UPS (we sold our furniture and just shipped our "stuff" via UPS so we could just have the boxes there before we arrived as opposed to spending an arm and a leg with a moving company) I told my husband we had to do one more thing before I would be willing to actually sleep in our apartment. We had to have our a/c's installed. After much research here is what I learned about an a/c's.

1. Have them properly (read:professionally) installed.

My husband and I aren't really good at building or nailing or screwing in light bulbs or unclogging the toilet, so we knew that we'd have NO idea how to properly install a window unit. Some people feel totally comfortable doing this. I will say the following. If you live on a higher floor or the window you are installing a window unit into is above a sidewalk I would highly, highly recommend paying someone to install the unit for you. If it falls out of your window you will be responsible for the damage incurred as a result. Also, and perhaps more of a motivator, you will probably either seriously hurt or kill someone. Maybe a small child, maybe a baby. Please, please only install your own window unit you are 199% CERTAIN that you are doing it properly. Keep in mind that birds frequently land on the unit and can add a significant amount of weight to the unit. Another thing is that one of the windows in our apartment was really wide. So wide in fact that the "wings" that come with the unit designed to fit inside the widow were not big enough. Our installer had to cut plexiglass in to fit the space not covered by the wings. I don't know how I would've remedied this problem if we were doing it on our own.

2. BTU

Do a little research and find out how many BTU's you need. Any website selling window a/c's should have a guide to how many BTU's you need . I know our 12,000 BTU unit supposedly cools a room that is 500 sq feet, but I ended up getting one 12k BTU unit for the living room that is 140 sq ft and one for the bedroom which is also about 200 sq ft. I thought maybe I had gone a little over board, but my installer said I was so smart to pick those because they are way more efficient and cool your room very quickly. I also purchased a smaller 5000 BTU unit for my other bedroom and I have to keep that one all the time in order to just keep the room cool. Another reason I went with the larger a/c units is because I found them for a really good price. I think is spent $199 on each one and similar smaller units ran for close to the same price. I chose J and R in NYC by chance and picked up the units on my first day in, after signing our lease but before we went to IKEA. There are delivery services you can use, but I just found this to be the cheapest option. I don't regret it, but now that I'm more versed in the city, I probably would have arranged for them to be delivered.

3. Filter

You need to clean the filter every 2 weeks. This just involves pulling out the filter and running it under the facet in the bathtub. Then, you just let it dry for a few hours. This is the single best thing you can do to reduce your electric bill during the summer. Remember that these filters are somewhat delicate, so handle them accordingly.

4. Choose a good installer

We called our door man for a recommendation, but if you google a hardware shop near your apartment you should find someone to do it. You need to know the size of your a/c and the size width wise of the window you're planning to install it in. I think we paid $125 for the largest window, $85 for the other window that didn't need any plexiglass, and $65 for the smallest unit.

Now a word on buying used a/c's. In a later post I discuss buying used items and how wonderful it is. The reason I didn't buy a used a/c is simply because I didn't want to have a big time lapse between when I moved into my apt and when I had an air conditioner. Also, since they can be very heavy you have to take into account that you'll be moving it without a car. Of course you can pay for a cab, but you might end up having to take the subway all over to find an a/c only to discover it's not in great condition. I, for one, have taken excellent care of my units. They are impeccably clean and cared for. However, I will likely move with them because I know prefer them to central a/c. Only cool the room you're using and do it quickly.

Just Spend the $7

Perhaps this post will be most useful to those coming to New York City as students, but unless you are very wealthy or are joining this great city with a salary of well over $150k, you are going to feel the pinch. Let me break it down for you:

An average one bedroom in Manhattan can cost you about $2500, a two bedroom $3200. This number varies WIDELY as you can find deals and sublets, but depending on what kind of living you're used to, let's use these numbers as bases. So, if you're spending about $2500 on your one bedroom apartment in the City you're probably also working in the city, which means you get the pleasure of spending another 2% of you income on taxes paid to the City of New York. That's right, a 2% tax just for working here. Groceries for one are perhaps $300 or $400 or more if there are two or more people. Then there is your monthly subway pass at about $100 and your occasional cab or Zipcar at $80. Maybe you want to go out and entertain yourself and while there are many free options, you will probably drop quite a bit of money on dinner and a movie since tickets are $12 and dinners usually aren't less than $12-$15 a plate. I feel kind of silly writing this because so many people I know get by on so little. They scrimp and save because they want to or have to or some combination of the two. They don't eat out, order in, ever take cabs or see movies. They are able to survive on very little and I commend them. I, however, would be so unhappy if I had to watch every single penny so closely. I know this because I had to do it.

I think I can pin down the main problem to grocery shopping. Food is so expensive here. Regulars like cereal are so much higher than the national average. Meat is another big one. One way or another money just leaves you here. I really don't think it's something I can explain to someone who hasn't lived here. It really depends on your lifestyle and what circumstances brought you here, but if you are on a tight budget because you are a student or have a limited salary I would just encourage you to figure out what drives you absolutely crazy about living here and then just decide that you will spend the money if you need to to keep yourself sane.

Here is my example:

I missed my car and the convenience it gave me when I moved here. Even when I figured out how get around without needing to own a car to live my life, I would still be faced with constant reminders of my old life. This kept me from getting to a place where I could embrace all the City had to offer for many months. One evening my husband and I ate dinner on 72nd street, about 40 blocks away from our apartment. I think we had taken the subway down and were waiting for the bus to take us back not only because we had a free transfer from the train (people in NY call the subway the train, too) but also because the bus would drop us off right in front of our apartment and I didn't want to walk the 1/3 mile from the subway home. Did I mention it was bitterly cold, windy and raining? And did I mention I was wearing the least weather appropriate clothing and that I was pregnant? So here we are waiting and waiting. I know the bus was supposed to come every 15 minutes, so at the very longest I would just have to wait 15 minutes. Well 15 minutes came and went with no bus. It was so cold and I was so irate. It was moments like those that I longed for a car to drive me home. As we waited for the bus that never came cab after empty cab passed us by. It would have cost me and my husband about $7 including tip to get home, but it wasn't an option. We weren't living in NYC on a big salary. We were students! We lived the student lifestyle. We didn't take cabs. I remember standing in the middle of the street to look to see if the bus was coming and I saying to my husband, "If the bus doesn't come by the next light I'm getting in a cab." I didn't really give him much of a choice since I was getting in a cab regardless of whether he joined me or not. To make a long story even longer, we took a cab home that night. I had many repeat experiences similar to that one. I had many times when I was late to an event that was taking place just over walking distance away-more than a mile. It was not really feasible to be on time and walk so I had to wait for the bus or subway. Oh the times I was running late and became more infuriated by the minute waiting for the bus!

After my first summer I just decided that from then on if I wanted to take a cab I was just going to take it. This was not something I planned on doing frequently, but on a, "I'll know it when I see it basis." There's this funny anecdote I've heard before, that a New Yorker who easily drops $200 on jeans will agonize for 20 minutes on whether to take the subway or pay the $7 for a cab. This little tip of taking a cab has helped many of my friends deal with New York City much better. It's not an all the time thing, but if you need to do it, just do it. That is what it means to live here.

Each of you will have a different thing. Some people really hate making the big trek to Fairway or to New Jersey. They would rather do their bulk shopping online or shop at their neighborhood grocer even if it means it is more expensive. I have other friends who really love Broadway shows so they make an effort to see them frequently. Still other friends like to travel so most of their money goes to taking trips. I think my overall recommendation is that if you want to be sane living here then you need to give yourself a lot of wiggle room, more than you would have to anywhere else because there are so many things that make living here hard.

Zipcar

I spent the first several months of my life hating New York City. If there was a word stronger than hate I would use it. It was like a deep, white hot burning in my soul. I would regularly find myself bursting into tears in the middle of an outing (this is not a joke, many tears were shed waiting for the 1 line when I was late for church).

A friend of mine got a Zipcar membership and would mention in passing that she would use it on her weekly trip to the grocery store. The reason I had dismissed Zipcar initially was because I already felt like I was hemorrhaging money just existing in the City. Anyway, I didn't see my husband letting me splurge on something so frivilous as a car sharing membership. That all changed after he had to endure so many outbursts at my hate for public transportation. When I finally looked into Zipcar, this is what I discovered:

You can have either an Occasional Driving Plan (OCP) where you pay an application fee (which is waived in many cases by being a student or associated with a certain group) and then a yearly fee or an Extra Value Plan (EVP) where you still pay an application fee, but then also pay a flat monthly rate and get a set amount of hours. If you drive a lot than this makes sense because overall you pay less per each hour used. The EVP plan, however, requires you spend a minimum of $50 a month and I never drive that much for the errands I run. With an OCP you just reserve the car as you need it and pay by hour, with the lowest cars now coming in at $8/hour. They have Civics up to BMW, pick-up trucks and minivans. With the exception of the $8/hour cars, you can rent a car for up to 7 hours and pay the hourly rate, or just rent for the full 24 hrs and pay the daily rate ($77/day).

Zipcars also include gas and insurance. The insurance deductible is $500 if you get in an accident, but you can also include a nominal yearly or monthly fee to have that deductible waived. The rule is if you have the car and the gas dips below a 1/4 tank you have to fill it up. A gas card is included in the car. You also get an extra driving credit if you wash the car or have the oil changed while you have it and these costs are reimbursed. You might wonder why you would ever take time out to have the car washed, but there was one time when I rented the car for 48 hours because I had many errands to run in preparation for the birth of my baby and I actually found myself with time to wash the car.

For the most part the cars are parked in garages all over the city, with the occasional row of Zipcars parked in dedicated spots along a city street. Instead of needing a key to get in, you flash your Zipcard at the front window where a little gizmo is located and the car opens up. The key is inside the car which you use to drive, but they advise you to leave it in the car at all times and use your Zipcard to lock and unlock the doors.

Not only do I use my Zipcar to take me and a friend to the grocery store, but I also take it to New Jersey every other month to stock up on staples. I also discovered that it is a heck of a lot cheaper to pick up/drop a friend or family member from JFK by renting a Zipcar than it is to pay for a car service. A car or cab to or from JFK usually runs about $60, and I can get to the airport and back in about 2 hours (more on the airport in a different post). I'd rather rent a car for $8 or $11 and hour and enjoy driving at my own control than pay someone to do it for me.

If you ever find yourself unable to return the car at your designated time, you can call the 1-887# and extend your reservation by 30 mins. This only works if the car has not previously been reserved by someone else, but I have extended my reservation many times and have only had one experience where it has been previously reserved. Also, you can show up to pick up your car up to 15 mins early without an extra charge. Those extra 15 mins make a HUGE difference if you only have it for 90 mins to get to the grocery store and back. Obviously you can only get the car if it is there, so be prepared to wait if the car is being used by someone else. Again, very rare but it has happened to me once.

Lastly, Zipcars come with EZPasses which are boxes usually stuck on the windshield that allow you to pass through the toll without using cash. These charges show up on your bill about 2-4 weeks later. My husband and I once drove to DC and back and were concerned that our EZPass wouldn't work in other states besides NY and NJ but it worked the entire way.

Zipcars are really a wonderful way to improve your life in the City. Used wisely and shared appropriately they give you most of the freedom of a car and none of the hassle of insurance, gas or a car payment.

2 side notes.

One, people ask me frequently if I own a car in the city. Instead of dedicating a whole post to this I will just say that if you have a large family, travel a lot, or plan to stay in NYC long term getting a car might be something you may consider. Keep in mind that unless you have a car that you don't mind getting dinged or weather damaged you will need to pay for a garage space that may or not be located on your block. These spaces run anywhere from $250/month and way, way up. Also, if you choose to park on the street you will have a lot of competition. Tickets are given out all the time and the streets are cleaned twice a week so you usually have to move your car twice every week even if you're not going anywhere, and you have to actually remember to do this. If you have an old clunker that you don't mind moving than it might be worth it for you, but I can usually get everything I need with a Zipcar.

Two, there are now other car sharing companies out there. I don't know much about them except that they aren't as widespread as Zipcar in that their cars are located in fewer places. Also, Mint cars will lock up on you if taken out of state and Hertz has less than five locations in the city.

Grocery Store

The single biggest complaint I find with people moving to New York City is getting to the grocery store. It seems that if people already dreaded the store, or like me, looked forward to the "necessary spending extravaganza" (as my husband puts), they all got lumped into the "Do I have to category?" If you have a family the weekly grocery trip becomes even more problematic. I never really realized how much a gallon of milk weighed until I had to lug it, along with many other things, home alone on a rainy day.

Her are my following tips:

1. Get a Zipcar membership. I will discuss Zipcar more in a subsequent post, but for now suffice it to say that your grocery shopping with be so much easier if you have access to a car. I invested in this membership and usually have not had a problem convincing a friend or two to join me on a trip to the grocery store. Zipcar now has cars for $8 an hour and with my tips you will be able to make it there and back in 90-12o minutes. Two friends in two hours = $8/pp. Not bad. In order to account for drop off time I advise starting with 30 minutes adding 30 minutes for each person going to the grocery store if you are staying in Manhattan. If 3 friends go thats 30 mins plus 90 mins for 120 minutes total. You do not want to be rushing around trying to drop everyone off at their apartments with only 10 mins left to get the car back to its garage. You can usually extend the Zipcar reservation by 30 minutes if you find yourself out of time, but that is only if someone hasn't reserved the car immediately afterwards. I recommend doing one large grocery shopping trip per week and one run to Costco every other month. If for some reason you don't want to get a zipcar membership, then I would recommend still doing a large trip to the store each week but take a cab home so you can buy everything you need at once.

2. Be organized! This will be a recurring theme. BE ORGANIZED! If you are not an organized person, you need to become organized to thrive in the City. In the case of grocery shopping I plan my menus by the week and buy all staples at Costco. Organize your grocery list by section if not isle. Since I have a small family and stay home I plan on cooking 4 meals a week for dinner and have many easy items on hand for lunches if we're not having left overs. We usually eat out for dinner or order in on the weekends so I plan which day I will cook what and go over each recipe twice to make sure I have everything I need.

3. Shop at Fairway or Pathmark or go the grocery store in New Jersey or Queens. Shopping at any other grocery store in Manhattan will result in overpaying for what you get and having a vastly limited selection. You might not think those things are so bad, but once you have to pay $7 for your favorite cereal or $1.20 for a jar of baby food you'll do anything to shop at a regular grocery store.

Fairway-There are two Fairways in Manhattan, one on 72nd St and Broadway and one on 125th St in Harlem by the river. Fairway is pretty much an overgrown mom and pop store. Normally mom and pop stores are cute and you feel great for supporting local businesses. But shopping at Fairway is a frustrating experience until you've been there a few times and you know what you're up against. I HATE the Fairway on 72nd. It is perpetually crowded and carries about 50% of the selection of the 125th st. location. The Harlem location is great if you live on the Upper Westside because it is the closest store with a wide variety of products and normal prices. If you are shopping at either Fairway for the first time allow an extra 30-60 minutes to acclimate yourself to the store. It is confusing and many times the same product will appear in several different parts of the store. Also, Fairway is not known to always carry nationally known products. For example, the sell many Jell-O products, but I have not found instant vanilla pudding on many occasions. I also can't find toffee chips for cookies, chopped frozen onions, or Super Stuffer hard taco shells. Just know that if you are looking for specific products that you may not be able to find them here. If you really want a traditional grocery store experience see the next item.

Pathmark-There are various Pathmark locations scattered throughout Manhattan. This grocery store publishes a weekly circular online. It is by far the best circular of any grocery store I've ever seen. Not only does it carry many loss leaders every week (products a grocery store sells at a loss to draw in customers) but it also will publish if a particular product on sale qualifies for a coupon currently available in the Sunday paper. Another reason I love Pathmark is because it is a taste of the West in New York. Large grocery stores carrying national products at reasonable products.

New Jersey or Queens-I have a lot more experience shopping in New Jersey than in Queens, but you want to get out of Manhattan if at all possible. You will probably enjoy the jaunt in a car to a lesser crowded area. Just be absolutely certain you have the correct driving directions before you head out. If you own a navigation system, now is the time to use it. Plan where you are going and use the trip out of town to pick up any essentials from Target or Trader Joes.

Costco-These are the staples I purchase at Costco. You need to familiarize yourself with what Costco carries if you don't already know, but here are the products that are MUCH cheaper at Costco. I usually save between 30%-50% on the following products:

Sugar, brown sugar, water bottles, sweetened condensed milk, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, shredded cheese (I divide the larger bag into smaller sandwich bags and freeze them until I need them), frozen chicken breasts, cereal, juice, milk gallons, baby wipes, sodas, shortening, peanut butter, mayo, jam, fruit cups, detergent (this is a big one-detergent is very expensive in Manhattan), ziploc bags, trash bags, butter (another big one), hot dogs, frozen berries, pasta, tin foil, cleaners, pain relievers, feminine hygiene products, and bread crumbs. Of course anything you eat regularly that is non perishable should be purchased in bulk. If you think you have no where to store bulk items, you just aren't looking hard enough. If need be you can store things under the bed by measuring the distance between the floor and the bottom of your bed and purchasing flat storage containers that fit. You can also store things by lining the back of a closet with goods. Many apartments in New York also have a lot of storage space above the cabinets in the kitchen. You can store things under or behind your couch or you can even get those shoe holders that are hung behind a closet door and put food items in there. I also purchased a very cheap ($10) metal shelving unit that fits inside my closet along the right interior wall. You probably have the space, it's just a matter of finding it.

And there you have it! Just to recap, be organized. Rent a car or take a cab home to enable you to purchase as much as you can at a time. Buy in bulk to save an immense amount of cash.

A Little About Me

My name is Natalie and I moved to New York City in August of 2008. My husband attends law school and we have a gorgeous baby girl name Olive.

I had heard living in Manhattan was something else, but having grown up in Los Angeles I thought, "Come on. How hard could this possibly be?" Very hard, it turns out. I learned very quickly that doing anything the way I was accustomed to doing it would be a recipe for disaster. Going to the grocery store? Forget it. Purchasing air conditioners? Good luck! Finding a pediatrician, dentist, OB, hospital, dry cleaner, enchilada sauce...the list goes on and on.

However, after a few years, a lot of work and seemingly endless trial and error I finally discovered the tips and tricks to really thriving in this environment. In each post I will share everything I have learned about a particular subject. If you have questions, please post a comment and I will get back to you within 7 days.