Trying to rent an apartment in New York City? Be prepared to deal with some seriously shady characters. 

Seriously. People are shady, especially apartment brokers.

This text conversation, posted on Reddit by a user named randompittuser shows just how degrading (and illegal) some of the real estate brokers in NYC can be.

The text follows the broker reveals that he only told a potential renter that the fee was essentially assumed, but when pressed the broker reveals that anyone that 'is posting under no fee apartment (sic) are all brokers. You should know that.'

The fact that this real estate broker only revealed the fees after turning a key to allow this person to view an apartment is beyond shady, particularly due to fact the listing stated attached fees. 

So, if you're suspicious that something about these kinds of dealings is off, well, you're not wrong. There is something decidedly sketchy about all of this.

We'll go so far as to call bullsh*t on it. 

Unfortunately, this practice seems to be a common occurrence, making the rent hunt even more unbearable as you already know you're going to be handing away half of your paycheck and part of your soul in order to find an apartment in NYC. 

We get a lot of guff for callin' out brokers on their shady sh*t. "You're attacking an entire occupation, not all brokers are bad, I'm an honest broker, look at me."

Yes, that's true. We're going to continue calling out the shady practices of dishonest brokers so the honest ones can handle their business with the comfort of knowing they're at least principled enough not to resort to smoke-and-mirrors crap. 

But look at this guy! Like, really? Why should apartment hunters assume that they're always being lied to? Okay, so bad example. You should assume that nobody has the best intentions and arm yourself accordingly. 

That said, you also shouldn't have to sift through the slush pile of who may or may not have a backbone to find a place to live. 

That's ridiculous. Save yourself the time and money and check out the Oliver app. 

They're the only no-fee apartment rental app that cuts through all of the lies to help you find an apartment in NYC without having to pay a broker fee for work they might not have even done. Check out the Oliver app here. 

Check Out 10 Dirty Little Secrets Apartment Brokers in NYC Don't Want You to Know.

[via Imgur] [Feature Image Courtesy ExpertBeacon.com]