How We Found Our Second Apartment in NYC - Another Miracle

While searching for our first apartment in New York City, I would have never dreamed—no, not even hoped—that that story would ever repeat itself again! You can read our first apartment miracle story here. Never would I have imagined that this second apartment hunt would be even more stressful than the last one! Miracles are amazing and touching, but we often forget about the difficult times beforehand—those moments when we don’t know what to do and feel powerless and desperate. I could happily skip that part, but then we probably wouldn’t recognize the miracle for what it is.

Joshua and I sublet an apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn for the past seven months. The original renter wanted to move back in on July 1st, so we started our apartment search early to avoid the stress we experienced last time. Two and a half months (which is very early for NYC) before our move-out date, we began scanning websites and Facebook listings. Occasionally, we checked out some apartments in person, but they were either way too far away or dumps, so we decided against them.

When the last three weeks came around, we started getting nervous. We began arguing after apartment viewings because one of us would think we should take the place, and the other would never, in a million years, want to live there. Josh didn’t want to live far away and deal with a 60-minute commute, and I didn’t want mold in the bathroom or broken walls. After a few arguments, we realized we were both just trying to figure out how much we were willing to compromise on our dreams. We decided to let each other say no to certain apartments without guilt. It became us against the problem—not against each other. We shared our situation on all possible channels (Facebook, Instagram, housing groups…) and prayed with our small group from church.

I knew God wouldn’t leave us hanging, but we were still extremely stressed out when we didn’t have a place just a week before moving! In those last few days, we practically lived on housing websites. Joshua messaged so many people on Facebook that he got blocked from sending messages! We were mostly looking for a place with roommates because we currently can’t afford to rent on our own. A cheap studio costs between $2,000 and $4,000, depending on the area. Landlords usually require an income of 40 times the monthly rent—meaning $80k to $100k per year! Most places with roommates didn’t want a couple, so we were often turned down from places we actually liked.

Three days before our move, we still didn’t have a place. Then Joshua’s boss texted us to ask if we were still looking. She had heard from a friend who had just moved to a really nice area in Brooklyn. He had signed a one-year lease but then found his dream place in Manhattan and signed a lease there too—so he was hoping to find someone to take over his Brooklyn apartment. It was listed as a two-bedroom, with the option to rent the whole place or share it with a roommate. Since we couldn’t afford the full rent, we messaged him and said we’d take one room. He had already been contacted by another woman who wanted to do the same. After texting with her, we all agreed to rent the place together. On Saturday, June 28th, we signed the lease and sent the money. On Sunday, June 29th, we were supposed to pick up the keys and move the next day.

But on Sunday, we got a message from the guy saying our new future roommate had backed out and wouldn’t be signing the lease—so it would just be the two of us. Joshua’s boss kept messaging her friend, saying he should still rent to us because we were nice, responsible, and Christian. Needless to say, Josh and I were extremely stressed. We weren’t sure if we even had a place to stay the next day! There were two possible outcomes: either he would cancel everything and refuse to rent to us, or he’d be nice and let us move in and pay half the rent.

That Sunday night, we went to pick up the keys. When we arrived, he sat us down on the couch for a crisis talk. I was obviously on the verge of tears the whole time and was so thankful Josh handled the talking. The guy turned out to be really kind, and we agreed that we could move in and help him find a new roommate. We were so relieved!

On Monday, June 30th, we moved in during 90°F (32°C) weather—humid air—moving everything down from a fourth-floor walk-up into the new apartment. (Thankfully, it had an elevator, though no AC yet!) We celebrated our seventh wedding anniversary with the biggest couple challenge —moving!

Right now, we’re in the final phase of finding a new roommate and are just waiting for the new girl to sign the lease. We already feel at home in the new place and love the neighborhood. We’re almost in Downtown Brooklyn! We are still very much setting up as you can see by the different colored curtains and the fact that I can’t reach half of the kitchen cabinets. (Step ladder coming today) But as always, God stepped in and provided a home for us—not just any apartment, but an amazing one in a great location. Even though it happened at the last minute, we are so thankful!