Adult Decisions

Craig's List sends shivers down my spine. 

I am known to make quick decisions and not to think things through sometimes. As my mom would say, I am very impulsive. Before joining the "real world" I could get away with my impulsive tendencies for the most part. However, once I graduated college and faced some big decisions, I realized I needed to work on thinking before I acted.

Looking for a place to live is tough in general, but nothing compares to apartment hunting in New York City. The words nightmare, dreadful, and painful comes to mind, as I write this post. The sad part is, those words don't even do the NYC apartment hunt justice.

Rent in New York is already expensive, but add broker fees, first month rent, etc, and you're looking at an empty bank account before you can even blink. One of my favorite articles on living in New York describes a New York inhabitant's dilemma perfectly:

"Discover the cruel and bizarre world of New York City real estate. End up spending an obscene amount of money on something called a broker’s fee, first and last month’s rent and a security deposit. Cry a little bit in the leasing office but remind yourself that you’re so happy to be here."

I'll never forget laying in my bed at my parent's house crying in fetal position once I realized how much money I would have to fork over up front in order to sign for my current apartment. I couldn't understand how one little apartment could cost so much. Yet, I had my heart set on New York, so I handed over everything in my savings to live the dream. 

My roommate and I recently embarked on the dreaded apartment hunt. Craig's List and e-mails with brokers took over our lives. Every spare second we had was spent looking at apartments. My life revolved around finding an apartment and other aspects of my life quickly suffered. I wasn't sleeping, I was struggling to keep up at work, I had zero "me" time-- the list goes on.  To make matters worse, unforeseen circumstances popped up that crippled our hunt. By the end of a week of searching, I was exhausted, broken hearted, and discouraged. 

When I first moved to New York, I struggled to make rent and pay for my various other bills. I lived paycheck to paycheck and often wondered if I'd be able to survive before payday. I received a raise over the summer, and suddenly I could breathe again. I didn't struggle any longer for the most part and my life became pretty comfortable. The apartments we were looking at would have reverted me back to living paycheck to paycheck and empty my savings. To be honest, I didn't really want to go back to that lifestyle again.

Our  little apartment suddenly didn't look so bad. My roommate was the first to say it out loud, "Let me ask you this, do we even want to move?" As hard as it was for both of us to accept, we knew the answer. Yes, we wanted bigger beds, a living room, and to be closer to the subway. However, we both have worked hard to get to where we are and didn't want to ruin ourselves financially over a new apartment that didn't even fit the criteria we had set.

In the past, I would have spent the money and dealt with the consequences later, but the new adult in me wasn't having it. Bad credit and poor finances can ruin you for a lifetime. I can put up with not being 100% happy for a year in a small apartment. As the Fray sings, "Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same." My roommate and I made an extremely difficult decision, yet I know it is the right one for us. Adult decisions sometimes aren't fun or what you want, but hey, that's life.