A brand new evaluation reveals the high fees New York brokers charge tenants, with costs as high as $13,000.

A recent study by apartment rental company StreetEasy found that the average upfront cost of renting an apartment in New York City, including an agent’s commission, has skyrocketed to almost $13,000. This huge sum covers agent’s remuneration, first month’s rent and deposit, reports.

In 2023, the average upfront cost for broker-fee apartments was $12,667, up from $9,984 in 2019. The increase comes at a key time as New York City prepares for Wednesday’s City Council vote. The City Council will consider a bill geared toward relieving tenants of costly brokerage fees. The bill, generally known as the Fairness in Rental Housing Act (FARE), appears to have strong, almost veto-proof support.

For the study, StreetEasy surveyed over 500 renters and located that over 80% of respondents believed that landlords should cover agent fees. Additionally, 76% said they felt forced to pay a broker’s commission to secure a house in New York’s highly competitive rental market.

“The average New Yorker will spend more than 10 percent of their annual income just to cover these upfront costs,” said Kenny Lee, senior economist at StreetEasy.

Tenants are objecting to the high fees they’d to pay brokers to rent an apartment in New York.

“It doesn’t seem like this happens anywhere else,” said Kayla, 31, of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. She estimates she paid $4,000 in broker fees for her apartment seven years ago. “Because I did all the work for this (apartment), I feel like I wasted my money.”

Jemma Rowlands from Melbourne, Australia, thinks the realtor’s fee she paid for her first New York apartment in 2018 seemed “expensive and unnecessary.” Giving up upfront costs “seems good to me,” he says of the proposed bill.

Supporters of the Local Government Act argue that it’ll reduce the financial burden on tenants. But critics say landlords will offset the broker’s fee by increasing rental prices for annual leases.

“The FARE Act will fundamentally disrupt the New York real estate market, raise rents, and make it even more difficult to find housing, and nothing StreetEasy has proposed will solve any of these problems,” said York.

Supporters of this solution argue that the law will profit each tenants and intermediaries, the latter of whom often rent property with none guaranteed payment.

“When the bill comes into force, both landlords and agents will have the opportunity to negotiate how compensation is paid, and tenants will finally have a choice as to whether they want to work with a broker,” Lee said.

The popularity of weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro continues to reflect Americans’ desire to shed pounds. While these recent drugs provide an answer for people scuffling with obesity, many eligible patients – especially Black adults – cannot afford the high price.

These medications are also not the one solution to improving your health, as maintaining a healthy diet and exercising commonly are also key to losing a few pounds. However, current lifestyle change-based weight loss interventions largely fail to handle the needs of Black women.

As a community health researcherswe wondered why scientists had did not develop a lifestyle-based weight loss solution that worked for black women.

That’s why we reviewed 10 years of research on lifestyle-based weight loss interventions. We found that only just a few studies focused on black women, and those that did often resulted in only slight weight loss and were not consistent in their approach to weight loss. Why is that this so?

There is a missing mark for black women

Obesity increases the danger developing weight-related conditions comparable to type 2 diabetes, heart disease and a few sorts of cancer. Nearly 60% of black women within the US are obese, which puts them at greater risk of developing these conditions.

Lifestyle interventions specializing in a healthy food regimen and increased physical activity have been proven to often help most individuals shed pounds leading to a weight reduction of 5% to 10%. which also reduces the danger of chronic diseases. However, these lifestyle interventions often only end in: 2% to three% weight loss for black women.

Our review shows that amongst black women, lifestyle-based weight loss is hindered because: are often not included on this study. Because these studies did not have in mind their lived experiences, these interventions may not meet their specific needs. Of the 138 studies we evaluated, black women made up at the very least half of the participants in just eight studies.

There is an absence of research on why lifestyle interventions are often less effective for Black women. However, some studies highlight the impact of race and gender on their every day lives as potential aspects.

The role of a superwoman

Black women exposed to the constant stress of on a regular basis racism and sexism face a further burden of what researchers call the role of a superwoman. Black women not only should face their own experiences of racial and gender inequality, but additionally they should do it expect insensitive, hyper-dependent, and suppress their emotions to seem strong in family and community. Many minimize their weak points and overload their capabilities to satisfy the overwhelming responsibility of caring for other people.

Many famous names have spoken out concerning the effects of being a robust superwoman. Actress Taraji P. Henson identified how the necessity to point out strength can result in the physical and emotional needs of Black women being ignored.

Knocker Megan Thee Stallion spoke concerning the emotional toll of being a superwoman after she was shot by rapper Tory Lanez. “As a black woman… people expect me to take punches, take beatings, take beatings, and handle it gracefully. But I’m human.”

The role of superwoman places a high tax on Black women, leaving little room to prioritize their health. To deal with stress, some people engage in such activities emotional eating or binge eating. The constant demands of playing multiple caregiver roles can as well interfere with physical activity.

Naturally, these challenges make it difficult to adopt healthier eating habits and a consistent exercise program. Even in the event that they are working on losing a few pounds, some black women proceed to realize weight.

Improving weight loss for black women

Lifestyle interventions that fully consider Black women’s experiences in treatment could be the key to improving weight loss. We argue that Black feminism and womanhoodthat give attention to the experiences of women of color can assist researchers rebuild and redefine weight loss interventions to be more effective for Black women.

Black feminism and womanhood are approaches that lead Black women and girls to survive and thrive, particularly by continually considering the role that gender and race play on various issues. This framework focuses on multiple areas of health and well-being, including physical, mental and emotional health, arguing that self-care and well-being practices are acts of social change.

Focusing on the complete context of Black women’s lives can result in improvements in overall health. Obesity particularly is influenced by many aspects, and obesity treatment requires a give attention to these holistic health and well-being. This includes meeting the economic needs of Black women, incorporating faith practices central to Black lives, nurturing emotional and mental health, and constructing an environment where obtaining healthy foods and exercising every day are easy selections.

Current weight loss interventions vary greatly in the weather of Black women’s lives they give attention to. Some people emphasize, for example spiritualitywhile others give attention to emotional health. Approaches to weight loss that reply to individual needs and moving away from one-size-fits-all solutions can be crucial in addressing the varied points of Black women’s lives that impact their well-being.

If health care providers and researchers begin to take heed to and work with Black women to revamp weight loss interventions, they’ll likely find that their efforts to combat obesity amongst Black women are more effective.

A Chicago resident recently learned that his favorite bakery has way more to supply than candy.

As fate would have it, Vamarr Hunter, 50, recently learned that the Give Me Some Sugah bakery within the South Shore neighborhood was run by none aside from his long-lost biological mother, Lenore Lindsey, 67, of Chicago. This was reported on ABC 7.

According to the web site, Lindsey gave Hunter up for adoption as a newborn when she was 17 years old. However, the 2 remained close, living in the identical neighborhood, without even realizing it.

Hunter came upon he was adopted on the age of 35, but didn’t start searching for his biological family until a few years later. Throughout this time, he became a daily at Lindsey’s Bakery. After undergoing genetic testing, it became clear that Lindsey was his long-lost biological mother.

“It’s the happiest story and the happiest time of my life,” Lindsey told ABC 7. “It all came together during my senior year of college.”

When he finally identified Lindsey as his mother, Hunter said, “It was a great experience.”

He added: “This strengthens my faith even more.”

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Since meeting in person, they’ve turn out to be close and now even move like a family. Through Lindsey, Hunter met more of his biological relatives, including other siblings, The case was reported by People magazine. Meanwhile, Lindsey meets 4 grandchildren whose father is Hunter.

“When I called him, the connection was immediate,” Lindsey said. “I can not even explain it. It was as if every part in my heart had just opened up.

Hunter now also works for his mother, and at one point even took over Give Me Some Sugah’s operations when she was combating health complications. With her help, he told ABC 7 he mastered baking a pound cake. He also plans to maintain her bakery within the family, hoping to pass it on to one in every of his children.

“You can’t make up for lost time and days,” Hunter said. “The only thing you can do is make good use of the time you have.”

We only have one query: Has anyone called Hallmark yet? Because this feels like one other great intro to a feel-good movie!