When we talk about lower Manhattan, a certain area comes to everyone's mind, a place with lots of history and pesky tourists swarming there everyday.

No, we're not talking about the hipsters swarming around our beloved East Village.

We're talking West Village. It's on the upswing. Sort of. Maybe. Maybe not. Depends on how you look at things. Sure, it may be growing in popularity, but it's shrinking in terms of living space. Also, it's getting hella expensive to stay there.

Property Shark has compiled data about the famed neighborhood that has the rich and tourists flocking in droves.

Essentially, it's gone from Kerouac's walkabout to a highly gentrified bucket of exclusivity and overpriced housing options. 

But it's not all bad if you know how to do it right. 

Then again, doing it right in New York City rarely means you're doing it alone. Sometimes you just need a housemate or roommate to make it work financially. That’s why there’s Roomi.

Roomi’s the free app that helps you find a roommate in the safest, most secure way possible. With Roomi you don’t run into robots or spam listings from a Nigerian homeowner who, out of the goodness of his own heart, is renting a 3-bedroom loft for $800/month.

Roomi knows how stressful finding a housemate who’s not a sketchball is. That’s why their listing team is dedicated to sussing out the spam and the fake posts so you don’t wind up living in some kind of crazy sex kitchen (not quite sure what that is, but it’s not something we want to be a part of).

Download the Roomi app right here and find the reasonable roommate you’ve been longing for today. For free! You should never leave an apartment in the West Village you love simply because you can't find someone to live with you. 

As for the things you just gotta know about NYC's beloved West Village, well, read on. 

1. Not a bad idea to buy

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There are over 14,000 housing units in the famed neighborhood. About 62% of those are rentals, and compared to Manhattan, more residents prefer to purchase in the West Village than anywhere else.

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This could be due to the age of its residents. The median age is 37, and only 23% of households are families in the neighborhood. So, residents enjoy their privacy and solidarity. That's sooo West Village.

2. More bang for your buck

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Renting a studio or one-bedroom apartment in the West Village means you're gonna have to pay about $2,700 to $3,700 a month. That's about how much you pay for the same type of unit in Soho or Tribeca.

What makes the West Village great when it comes to renting is that if you'd prefer a three-bedroom apartment, you'd be paying about $2,000 less for one than you would in Soho or Tribeca.

3. It's not the absolute most expensive neighborhood in Manhattan (but it's close)

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There is also very few affordable apartments in the neighborhood as well. Out of 2,371 units only 107 are affordable. Because of these prices, the West Village is losing renters and vacancy rates rose 2.31% as of 2016.

The median price for purchases as of April 2016 is $1.4 million. Now, while that sounds insane, last October the median price was an outrageous $3.2 million. 

So, it seems that prices are cooling down, but they're still growing at a 57% increase year-to-year making it one of the most expensive neighborhoods in all of Manhattan.

4. Character staying power

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One of the oldest truths about the West Village are the really old buildings. The neighborhood loves its history and holds on to it as well. 

Over 200 buildings were built before 1900's. The oldest property, a one-family household, was built in 1821.

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Because the neighborhood is protected by the Greenwich Village Historic District, only three new constructions were filed since 2013. So its historic charm doesn't seem to really be in danger of going anywhere. Yes, you can file that under the win column. 

5. Pretty, pretty, pretty big

Size does matter in the West Village and there are some pretty shocking sized units in the West Village. The smallest home is 134 square-feet, but small is huge there as well. 

You might remember that the coolest tiny apartment is looking for new residents.

It looks like the West Village is trying to old on to the youth it attracts while still holding on to its old past. It's a delicate juggling act that is being closed watched by many in the real estate game and those who wish to move to Manhattan.

So, while there is so much to explore and do in the West Village, it looks like the best way to go about doin' that exploring is by simply visiting not staying. While you're there, get some awesome fries.

Or, you can squad up, so to speak, and find an apartment you can get with a roommate. Need one? Well, hit up Roomi, ya dingus. 

Check out 5 Reasons Why the East Village Is the Place to Be in NYC.