Virginia K. Smith

Room dividers for loft-dwellers of all budgets (BuzzBuzzHome)

The time has come to bid a fond "good riddance" to the poor door (NYP)

What you can rent around the world this summer if you put your apartment up for a Craigslist swap (DNAinfo)

The city's rent-stabilized tenants scored a major victory last night, as the Rent Guidelines Board voted for a rent freeze for the first time in its nearly 50-year history. This means that if you live in a stabilized apartment on a one-year lease, your landlord can't raise the rent at all when you renew this year. (The board also approved a two percent increase for two-year stabilized leases, which is a historic low in its own right, but not exactly as thrilling as an actual freeze.)

You've probably harbored your suspicions about your neighbors' rampant Airbnb-ing, but now you can see exactly how much the service is being used in your 'hood—and how much cash your neighbors are raking in. Thanks to an upgrade earlier this month, users of interactive data map Inside Airbnb can now see information based on all Airbnb listings within the five boroughs.

Q: A neighbor in our building recently died, and another neighbor and I are interested in potentially splitting the apartment to renovate and add on to each of our own individual units. What's the appropriate way to approach her children, who are handling the estate? And how soon is too soon? 

5 clever ways to lay out your studio (Apartment Therapy)

And now, an educational, depressing audio tour of your apartment (NYT)

Eat and drink your way through Bay Ridge (Gothamist)

Happy Friday: Is your favorite (or only) neighborhood grocery store a vermin-infested germ factory? A gross—but informative—new interactive map courtesy of AM NY will help you find out just that, if you dare. (Spoiler: if you live in Brooklyn, which had the most violations of any borough, brace yourself.)