Don't miss your next apartment
Free alerts for rent-stabilized listings in NYC.
From Los Angeles to NYC:
Apartment secured before it was listed
How the Upcoming Feature gave Pat & Sean a head start in NYC's most competitive rental market, from 3,000 miles away.
The Challenge
Apartment hunting in NYC is hard enough when you live here. Now imagine doing it from Los Angeles.
Pat & Sean were competing in a market where the median 1-bedroom in Manhattan goes for $5,000 per month. They had already lost an apartment to a bid that was $900 over asking. Traditional methods like refreshing StreetEasy and browsing public listings were not cutting it.
They needed an edge. Something that would put them ahead of the thousands of other renters competing for the same apartments.
The Strategy
Browsed Upcoming Listings
Using Rent Reboot's Upcoming Feature on the Max plan, they browsed apartments whose leases were ending soon, before they hit the open market. They favorited 10 apartments that matched their criteria.
Cold-Emailed Brokers Directly
They emailed the listing brokers for each favorited apartment, asking if the units might be relisted or if similar ones were coming up. Several brokers responded, some with upcoming availability and others with alternative suggestions.
Built a Relationship With a Broker
One broker shared that the current tenants had until the end of February to decide whether to renew their lease after living there for four years. This was insider-level intel most renters never get.
Followed Up at the Right Time
In early March, after losing yet another apartment to an overbid, they followed up with the broker. The tenants had moved out. The broker offered to show them the apartment immediately and encouraged them to apply.
Approved Before It Was Even Listed
They sent a friend to view the apartment, applied immediately, and got approved, all weeks before the unit was officially listed on any platform.
"Rent Reboot truly gave us an edge in an incredibly competitive market, and we're eternally grateful. We selected about 10 favorites from the Upcoming list and sent cold emails to the brokers. One broker mentioned the tenants had until the end of February to decide whether to renew. When the tenants moved out, she offered to show us the apartment right away, the unit isn't even scheduled to be listed for a few more weeks. We applied immediately and just got approved!"
Pat & Sean
Max Subscriber · Relocated from LA to NYC
Why This Worked
Saw listings before everyone else
The Upcoming Feature surfaces apartments with expiring leases before they hit StreetEasy, Zillow, or any public platform.
Connected with brokers early
By reaching out proactively, they built rapport with brokers who later gave them first dibs on newly available units.
Stayed ahead of the competition
While other renters waited for listings to go live, they already had insider knowledge about when apartments would open up.
Moved fast when the moment came
When the apartment became available, they were already in the broker's pipeline, no scrambling and no bidding wars.
The Math Makes Sense
$5,000
Median 1BR rent in Manhattan
$29
Max plan per month
<1%
Of monthly rent
For less than 1% of one month's rent, you get access to upcoming listings, instant alerts, and text notifications — the tools Pat & Sean used to secure their apartment before anyone else even knew it was available.
Your dream apartment is out there.
Find it before everyone else.
Join 50,000+ renters using Rent Reboot to stay ahead of NYC's rental market. Start for free, upgrade to Max for the full edge.
Takes 60 seconds · No credit card needed