I’ve got a couple of friends who live in New York City, and the one thing they complain about the most is the rental environment. It’s common knowledge that finding great (and affordable) apartments in NYC is practically impossible to begin with, so when you throw in all the extras, such as the insanely high brokerage fees and the amount of personal time you have to waste looking at unfit properties, it’s no wonder that people abhor the entire process of securing living quarters out there.

That’s why I’m sure my friends will be interested in a company called Innovative Apartments. Innovative Apartments is a service that specializes in helping renters find suitable NYC apartments without all the usual hassles that go along with that task. I spent some time browsing through the Innovative website, which is at www.inapts.com, and came away with the following impressions.

First, I really like how easy it is for users to set up their personal search parameters to help narrow down the list of available apartments. For example, you can specify any of the five boroughs, as well as a specific area within the boroughs, the price range you’re willing to pay, the number of bedrooms you require, and whether or not you want a furnished apartment. When the results come back, you can see the rent, the date the apartment will be available, the cross street to give you a general idea of the location, and a photo if there’s one in the database.

A second thing I like about Innovative Apartments is their Email Alert System. This is available to members and allows you to receive email notifications when an apartment matching your criteria gets listed on the site. This is a very convenient feature because it means that you don’t have to constantly search the site until you find what you want.

Finally, Innovative Apartments charge much lower fees than traditional brokers. You won’t have to worry about paying thousands of dollars or a high percentage of your first year’s rent in order to take advantage of Innovative’s comprehensive services.

Overall, I’d have to say that Innovative makes finding an apartment in NYC as painless as possible. So if you’re currently looking to rent in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, or the Bronx, then you really have to check out InApts.com first!