Lucy Cohen Blatter

We here at BrickUnderground have to tip our hats to vacation rental site Airbnb. The company has partnered with the city to offer free apartments (with no broker fee, of course) to New Yorkers in need to post-Sandy.

With the post-Sandy recovery underway, questions linger as to how New Yorkers can be more prepared for hurricanes in the future, and how waterfront housing can be built to mitigate future damage.

This $3,500 two-bedroom, one bath is on the nice, convenient tree-lined block of West 80th Street, between Broadway and Amsterdam.

Pros: The location --- a block from the 1 train and a block from Zabar's (not to mention tons of other conveniences). Plus, the appliances in the kitchen and bathroom are new. The building has a live-in super.

Finish out the lease at this $2,150 studio in the Financial District's Ocean 1 West building and you'll be eligible to renew in March.

Pros: The luxury rental building, located across from Battery Park, has tons of amenities, including 24-hour doorman and concierce, fitness center, on-site dry cleaning, laundry and housekeeping. There's also laundry on every floor.

Anyone who's ever been in the market for a co-op has probably noticed how reluctant a broker can be to offer up the square footage of the unit.

While it's only fair that buyers want to quantify their potential purchases, the broker often is unwilling to -- or at least very cautious -- about giving away those numbers.