It’s no secret to New Yorkers hunkering down in the city: many of their neighbors are missing.
New Yorkers have fled the city in droves, but where did they get off to? Those who can afford it are renting homes in rural communities upstate, the Hamptons, and small towns across the Northeast.
The owners of Home Sweet Hudson, an Airbnb listings and management company, said that inquiries are way up. Many people are asking to rent homes for several weeks to several months.
Co-owner Vanessa Vargas said that clients frequently ask about “internet service and Wi-Fi” so they can keep working and otherwise stay connected far from the city.
Jennifer Grimes, who runs a rental service for properties in the Catskills and Hudson Valley, said she’s working 70 hours a week to process all of the business that’s come her way. Some vacation property owners have canceled renters’ reservations so they can stay at their own properties, she said.
It’s the same story out in the Hamptons, said Town & County agent Steven Zellman.
“My phone is ringing off the hook with one- and two-month rentals,” he told the Post. “I have done 11 rentals in the last five days, and am working on four others as I write this.”
On the bright side for those still in the city, at least there’s more parking. [New York Post] – Dennis Lynch