Spring is the season when newly minted college graduates flock to New York City to start their careers. They begin the search for their dream apartment, brokers say, with the same singleminded determination that earned them their degrees and landed them their jobs in the first place. But that determination only goes so far when it comes to Manhattan real estate. [A]
“Almost every single person I’ve worked with thinks there’s a golden nugget of an apartment waiting right for them,” said Paul Hunt, an agent at Citi Habitats who specializes in rentals. “They all want to be in the Village, and they all want the ‘Sex and the City’ apartment.”
The first shock for a first-time renter will probably be the prices. Consider that the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom in the Village is more than $3,100 and that the average for a studio is over $2,200. Or that the average rent for a one-bedroom in a doorman building anywhere in Manhattan is close to $3,500. [B]
Mr. Hunt said that when he shows prospective renters what their budget really can buy, they are sometimes so appalled that “they think I’m trying to fool them or something, and they run away and I don’t hear from them again.”
Alternatively, the renter checks his or her expectations and grudgingly decides to raise the price limit, or look in other neighborhoods or get a roommate. “When expectations are very high, the process can be very frustrating,” Mr. Hunt said.
The thousands of new graduates who will be driving the engine of the city’s rental market from now until September will quickly learn that renting in New York is not like renting anywhere else. [C]
The second shock is likely to be how small a Manhattan apartment can be. It is not uncommon in New York, for example, to shop for a junior one-bedroom only to find out it is really a studio that already has or can have a wall put up to create a bedroom.
[D] To start with, landlords want only tenants who earn at least 40 times the monthly rent, which means an $80,000 annual salary for a $2,000 apartment. According to census data, more than 25,000 graduates aged 22 to 28 moved to the city in 2006, and their median salary was about $35,600.
Those who don’t make 40 times their monthly rent need a guarantor, usually a parent, who must make at least 80 times the monthly rent. In addition to a security deposit, some landlords also want the first and last month’s rent. Tack on a broker’s fee and a prospective renter for that $2,000 apartment is out of pocket nearly $10,000 just to get the keys to the place.
11. Which of the following would be the best title for this article?
12. On average, how much do tenants have to pay for a studio in New York City?
13. Which of the following words can best replace the word ‘prospective’ in paragraph 4?
14. Which of the following is NOT listed by Mr. Hunt as a reaction of prospective renters when he informs them of the prices?
15. According to Mr. Hunt, what would make the process of finding an apartment challenging?
16. Which of the following would best describe the attitude of renters who decide to raise their price limit after being informed of the price?
17. In which space (marked A, B, C and D in the passage) will the following sentence fit? Aside from the realities of price and space, the requirements set by New York landlords are also bound to help turn a bright-eyed first-time renter’s outlook grim.
18. Why did the writer mention the income of college graduates in 2006?
19. What does the word ‘Those’ in the last paragraph refer to?
20. Which of the following sentences would best complete the last paragraph?
