I dodged a 15% rent increase because of a new NYC housing protection law. Here's how to know if it could save you money.

Tech Insider : Economy, Economy
A sign advertises an apartment for rent along a row of brownstone townhouses in the Fort Greene neighborhood in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
A sign advertises an apartment for rent along a row of brownstone townhouses in the Fort Greene neighborhood on June 24, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

I'm a New York real-estate agent who's not worried about losing guaranteed commission. Here's what I'm doing to replace those funds.

Tech Insider
Mukul Lalchandani is sitting and smiling in his living room.

Courtesy of Mukul Lalchandani

The new first rule of home buying: fire your realtor

Tech Insider
A person handing themselves a house and keys
The best part of (briefly) having an agent was realizing just how much I had already figured out on my own.

Sebastian König for BI

Last summer, when I told my then-girlfriend that I had just hired a real-estate agent to help me buy an apartment, her response annoyed me: "Sounds like a scam."

Subscribe to nyc-real-estate