How to find a sublet in NYC: The online platform connecting apartments and renters

Finding a sublet or short-term rental in New York City can be challenging, to say the least. If you’re a student, intern, or recent graduate, affordability is likely a priority in your search and the task can feel particularly overwhelming. Inventory is low, rents are high, and nightmare roommate stories abound. There is a solution. Ohana—which means “welcome” in Hawaiian—makes it easy to find NYC sublets, assists with screening apartments and potential roommates, and offers protection against fraud.

Thousands of listings in NYC, some exclusive to Ohana

Why Ohana? Ohana is one of the largest furnished short-term rental providers in New York City. In just over two years, the platform has featured 33,000 listings and matched nearly 11,000 people with a place to live. Additionally, Ohana has listings you won’t find anywhere else, thanks in part to online Ohana communities.

Ohana Instagram Communities: Find your people and a place 

Ohana hosts numerous niche-specific accounts on Instagram: Girls Who Sublet, Artists Who Sublet, NYU Subletting, Columbia Subletting. “Most people want to sublet to a friend, but you can quickly exhaust your network,” said Ezra Gershanok, co-founder of Ohana. “Ohana has these robust niche communities that have more people, but still have some element in common—whether it's being a woman, an artist, or a student.”

The communities are sizable, and continue to add members; Girls Who Sublet, for example, counted 16,000 followers in January, and now has more than 50,000. “We do a lot of grassroots mining to get these affordable, market-rate apartments on our site that you simply can't find elsewhere,” Gershanok said.

Filled with photos of (real) places to sublet in New York, the accounts serve as a place where people who have a room or an apartment to sublet can post, and where those in need of a sublet can search. See a place in your price range that looks good? Send a DM to connect with Ohana, get further details about the listing, and set up an online introduction and tour.

That’s how Julia Niehaus, a recent NYU graduate, found a sublet in the city the summer of her junior year. She wanted to live with other women, so she looked at Girls Who Sublet and found a listing for $1,200 a month in Bed-Stuy. “I really wanted to live with girls. It’s such a great idea to bring girls together,” she said, noting one roommate is now a close friend.

The online introduction and accompanying video tour of the apartment, facilitated by a member of the Ohana team, helped Niehaus feel comfortable with the process. In addition to being generally cautious in her search, Niehaus also knows at least one person burned by a Facebook sublet scam. “I was glad I was signing a contract and meeting somebody. A virtual tour was enough on a limited timeline,” she said. “I thought, ‘I can feel good about making this decision.’ Housing is my biggest expense. It’s not something to play around with.” The following year, after signing a lease and doing a semester abroad, Niehaus used Ohana again, this time to find subletters for her own place.

More than just a listing service

Safety and fraud protection are key elements of the Ohana experience. “Other platforms are just listing services. You pay to post your place and then everything else is handled directly by the subletter and renter,” Gershanok said.

“We make sure you get the apartment you paid for, that it's returned to the host in good condition, and we process the security deposit. We won't release payment until the guest confirms the place matches what was shown on the video call. In a market with a lot of scammers, that's pretty important.”

Are you looking for a sublet in NYC? Try Ohana for a process that’s easy and offers built-in protection against fraud.