The “How to Adult Series,” a workshop provided by the Office of Student Leadership and Engagement (OSLE), is a recent academic installment through which students are given financial insight on very relatable life scenarios. They invited an expert from Cooper & Cooper Real Estate to come speak with the students enrolled in the workshop about the application process for renting apartments in the hectic retail market of New York City. Genevieve Pannell, a licensed real estate salesperson and client relationship manager for Cooper & Cooper, provided students with an idea as to what they can expect from the apartment-hunting process in terms of location, pricing, layout and personal financial requirements.

“The reason that we give these talks is that there’s just not a lot of resources out there to help students that are graduating, moving to the city and finding apartments,” Pannell said. The workshop focused on the practical steps apartment-seekers must follow to navigate the confusing rental market of the country’s most populated city.

“I don’t really have any prior experience in renting apartments, let alone in New York City,” said Justin Brock, junior marketing major. “I came here in the hopes of learning something, if anything, to get more experience. I don’t have any background knowledge because nobody’s ever reached out to students to teach them these things before.”

Pannell emphasized the importance of understanding the real estate market and keeping realistic goals in mind when searching for the perfect place to call home. Because the information needed to navigate renting in New York City is not commonly taught in the average college curriculum, students felt the “How to Adult Series” provided information that is vital to making life-changing financial decisions.

Kaitlyn Turner, a junior television and film major, said “I’m looking for an internship over the summer, so this was really beneficial. I have family in the city, but they’ve only ever owned there. They don’t really know how to help. Even though I have people in the city, what I’ve learned through the workshop will be really helpful.”

By providing the workshop, OSLE gives students the opportunity to step outside the classroom to pursue valuable skills they will need after graduation, including how to better communicate with roommates, plan routes to commute to work and how to make the most out of a studio or one-bedroom apartment.

“I think that when I was graduating college, there wasn’t a lot of talk about how to rent an apartment, what type of stuff that you need and what you should look for in a lease,” said Denise DeGennaro, an assistant director for OSLE. “This is a chance for students to hear from real estate experts on what they need and what they can expect, especially when looking for apartments in the New York City area which is a pretty competitive and expensive rental market.”

Throughout her presentation, Pannell urged students to stay alert and aware of who they work with when seeking out their first leases. She hopes students will walk away from the workshop with the ability to make practical and informed decisions, especially when exposing themselves to the unreliable marketing techniques of online real estate.

“The truth is that finding an apartment in New York City is kind of insane,” Pannell said. “It’s hard, it’s involved – it’s an expensive and complicated process. There’s a lot of misinformation, misconceptions and some shady things that happen out there.”