Renting in New York City is tough, with so many factors to consider: Price, neighborhood, and of course, proximity to a subway.
For a 26-year-old in Brooklyn, he’s not just living a block away from a subway station. He’s living feet from it.
Off the Myrtle Avenue subway station that serves the J, M and Z lines on the border of Bushwick and Bed-Stuy, Arpit Ahluwalia has little to no escape from the 24/7 soundtrack of the NYC subway. His building's walls muffle much of the commotion, but there's no ignoring the constant rumble.
"If I need fresh air, I’ll open [the window] with the caveat that it might get a little noisier," he said.
It's no little noise. And yet, Ahluwalia says "the subway thing becomes a constant thing that you drown out."
He moved to the city in the fall of 2024 from Philadelphia to get his masters degree from the Parsons School of Design. He and his two friends had to find an apartment that would suit their needs. Ahluwalia said being near the subway was a must-have for them.
"We’re students, we want to make sure we don’t miss our classes," he told NBC New York.
The fourth-floor walkup apartment with three bedrooms rents for $4,000 a month in all; Ahluwalia pays $1,300. For that, he gets a room in which privacy is not exactly guaranteed.
"I would see people notice me in the night and it’s a bit awkward," he said. "Blackout curtains was a big must for me, instantly as soon as I moved here."
Living in apartments so close to the subway is not for everyone. Some riders on the platform that is literally a stone's throw away from Ahluwalia's window have said it's been a dealbreaker for them in the past.
"I’ve been on StreetEasy looking at apartments and I’m like, 'Oh my God, this apartment is so cheap.' And you’re like oh, its on Broadway," said Roan Collom of Brooklyn.
But for Ahluwalia, the people-watching (yes, he does wave at some of the people he sees) and the convenient location makes the apartment feel like home.
"It's just making the most out of our situation. We kind of like it, we host a lot of gatherings of people who generally come here, they like the proximity of the station," he said.
