Upper West Side Coliving on W 85th Street & Amsterdam Avenue

Coliving in New York City, and on the Upper West Side specifically, exists for a specific kind of move to NYC: a stay between four weeks and a year, where the alternative is a broker fee, a guarantor letter, two months in a sublet, and a furniture run before the work even starts. If you are still weighing options, the best coliving in NYC guide lays out the seven factors to compare before you book.

We host three groups, in roughly that order:

• Summer interns at Manhattan firms: banks, consulting, media, research labs, usually employer-sponsored or self-paying for a 10-12 week program.
• Students at Columbia, NYU, Juilliard, Cooper Union, and the Manhattan School of Music, who want to live close to their school without committing to a 12-month lease in their first semester.
• Early-career professionals relocating to New York for four to twelve months, who want to settle quickly and decide where they actually want to live later.

The shared problem is the same: live in NYC quickly, simply, and at one transparent price.

Amsterdam Place is two adjacent prewar buildings on West 85th Street, half a block in from Amsterdam Avenue: 205 and 207. Both date to 1910. Together they hold roughly twenty-four rooms, run as one small coliving operation rather than a chain. You can read the buildings in detail on the residences page.

The architecture is what you would expect from the period. Limestone detailing on the lower facade. Tall bay windows on the front rooms, framing the street-side light. Original cornice lines along the rooflines, the sort of work that is more often restored than replaced. The interiors keep the prewar proportions: higher ceilings than newer construction, thicker walls between rooms, hardwood floors underfoot.

Three room types, three weekly rates:

• Private room, shared bath: $420 a week.
• Deluxe room, shared bath: $470 a week.
• Studio with ensuite bathroom: $620 a week.

Stays are billed every four weeks. The weekly figure is the figure: no separate utility bill, no WiFi surcharge, no cleaning fee, no amenity fee. Heat, hot water, electricity, gigabit WiFi, weekly common-space cleaning, the coworking lounge, on-site laundry access, bike storage, and community events are all part of it. You can see all room tiers for floor plans and current availability.

There is no broker fee. The standard NYC apartment broker fee (twelve to fifteen percent of the annual rent, paid up front) does not exist here, because there is no broker. There is no US guarantor requirement and no US credit history requirement. Proof of program, internship offer letter, employer letter, or graduate-school admission is typically enough.

The minimum stay is four weeks, in line with the New York City law prohibiting rentals under thirty days. Four weeks is the floor, not the ceiling; the more common stays sit between eight and forty-eight weeks. For shorter stays specifically, see our writeup on furnished short-stay rentals with no broker fee.

Pick the entry point that matches how committed you are:

• Reserve a room with no payment up front (the lightest option). Name dates and room tier; we hold it for a short window while you confirm program details.
• Book a tour (in person or virtual). We respond within one business day; the form takes about a minute.
• Book your stay (the direct route). Pay the service fee, secure the room, receive arrival instructions. Most summer-intern bookings take this route from May onward.
• Apply to live here (for longer stays where we want to talk before confirming). No US guarantor required; the application is read by the team, not by an automated screen.

If you are still weighing whether the address is right, the why the Upper West Side writeup is the longer answer.