Approved!

Last week, I was finally the first applicant on an apartment, and now I am approved. I'm going to sign my lease and pay my security deposit and first month's rent tomorrow morning before work. And as of November 1, I'll have an address on the west side of Upper Manhattan (not to be confused with The Upper West Side; I'll actually be just north in a Harlem neighborhood called Hamilton Heights). I'll be paying twice what I was paying in North Carolina for half the space, but I'll have an address on Broadway just steps from the Hudson River.

On the 1 train, I'll be 25-30 minutes from Times Square (pending the wait in the station, possible transfers across the platform to a 2 or 3 express, and the infamous en route delays). And from Times Square, it's two blocks to my job.

It's not the best building in the world, but the neighborhood is nice and it's the first studio I viewed with a separate kitchen and monthly rent under $1000. In many of the other studios I viewed, I tried to picture where my bed would be. In most scenarios, I would have been staring from my pillow into my oven.

And the best part: It's being gut-renovated (all new kitchen cabinetry and appliances, retiled bathroom with new tub, toilet and sink and new wood floors). I'm sure phone photo ops will come along as renovations are completed and I begin furnishing from scratch - as I sold or gave away almost everything I had by way of furnishings in North Carolina. Oh yea - and the other best thing about it: I applied for the apartment through a broker, but the building is no-fee.

I can't believe that in less than a month I will have my first New York City address! After multiple real estate disappointments, it feels like it has been a long time coming, but by a New Yorker's watch, the time spent and end result have me feeling especially lucky.

But I better not hop onto Residential Cloud Nine until I sign on the dotted line.