This is part of a larger series of posts looking at the show Friends and what would have to change about it to make it work if it began airing in 2019, 25 years after the original 1994 start date. The rest of the series can be read here.

I have several close friends who didn’t watch Friends growing up. In fact, I’d say that most of my friends don’t like Friends, which really just proves that opposites can attract. One of their major protests every time I try to get them to give the show a try (it’s an annual discussion) is how unrealistic the show is. “Monica and Rachel don’t make enough money to afford their apartment in NYC!” They cry!  

Well, kids, I’m here to dispel that myth right now. They absolutely do make enough money to afford their apartment in NYC. 

Rent control has been present in some form or another in NYC since the 1920s, but was more formalized in 1943 when Roosevelt passed federal laws about price stabilization nationwide. Even after his temporary measure expired, rent remained under control by the local government. In the 50s, the most expensive apartments in NYC were deregulated, meaning prices could escalate to whatever landlords decided was market value as soon as the lease was up for renewal. In 1969, a Rent Stabilization Act increased the number of apartments that were regulated, and in 1971 the power was passed to the state government. In 1997, apartments with market-value rents over $2000/month (about $3150 in 2018 dollars) would be deregulated, and deregulation could also begin when the household income hit $175,000. (Note, 1997 is after our show begins, but could have impacted our characters.) By 2002, however, only 31.9% of NYC apartments had been deregulated, meaning the other 68.1% were still under some form of rent regulation. 

It’s a little trickier than all that though: To qualify for rent control instead of just rent stabilization, an apartment needs to have been continuously held by the same lessee for decades, most likely since about 1971, if not since 1947 (the difference has to do with how much it cost over time and which regulatory laws it falls under due to that price, and frankly it’s a bit confusing). In some cases, the lease can be transferred to a family member without changing the monthly rent, but from my research it looks like that could only apply from parent to child, and there are probably income restrictions on it. In general, when continuously occupied, rent can only be increased by no more than 7.5% every two years, and it can only increase more than that if the apartment should become vacant. It’s my understanding that it’s fair game to charge almost whatever you want at that point, as long as people will pay it. 

Key here is that rent cannot rise to match inflation. When inflation is only 2% per year, it doesn’t matter because 7.5% every other year covers that. But when inflation is more than 2% per year, the physical number not the actual buying power of the number is what matters. 

So, what does this have to do with Rachel and Monica? 

Well, I’m pretty sure our friends live somewhere in The Village (correct me if I’m wrong), I think on the east side, though I’m not sure we’re ever given a proper address. My triangulation is mostly based on Joey complaining that Ross is moving “all the way uptown” which is “like an hour away” in S5E6 “The One with the Yeti.” Also, in S2E10 Ridiculously Dull Bobby tells his story about trying to find a hardware store open past midnight in The Village, and I imagine he lives somewhere near Monica. 

We know from S3E6 “The One with the Flashback”, that Monica’s apartment is actually her grandmother’s. Monica got it when her grandmother moved to Florida, presumably just a few years before since Monica is (supposed to be) 26, not too long out of college. Monica says, “Otherwise I could never afford it…so if the landlord asks, I’m an 87-year-old woman who is afraid of her VCR.” So we know the apartment is (illegally) under her grandmother’s name still (it couldn’t have been passed to Monica) and the rent has been controlled since sometime before 1989, around when Monica would have graduated from college. 

In the 1980s, the average rent in NYC was already $1700 (nearly $4000 in 2018 dollars, jfc), but on the lower east side apartments were going for as low $275-$350, due to the high crime rates. Nicer 2 bed/1 bath apartments, like where Monica and Rachel live, might have gone for up to $750, but not more since the building doesn’t seem to have any amenities–No gym, no doorman, barely any storage space in the basement, etc. Under the 1970 law, rent can only be increased a maximum of 7.5% every other year, up until it hits $2000/month, at which point it isn’t regulated anymore. So, if Monica’s grandmother rented the apartment in 1985 at $750/month (which would be on the high end), in 1987 it would cost $806.50, in 1989 $866.72, and in 1995 it would cost a whopping $1,076.72/month. Still not cheap, but split between two people, $538 month is do-able. Even if Rachel’s the worst server in the world, she can still scrape together $550 per month for rent and utilities. 

This price, of course, assumes that Monica’s grandmother got the apartment in the 1980s. What if she got it in the 70s? In the 70s, the average rent in NYC was $335/month, and a nice two-bedroom brownstone right on Prospect Park went for $315. (A lot happened to make prices spike in the 80s.) In the 70s, an apartment on the lower east side could easily cost under $150/month. But, let’s guess the rent for this apartment in 1975 was $150, since it’s 2 bedrooms and nice. In 1985, the same apartment would be $215.34, waaaay under the 1985 market value. In 1995, around when Rachel might have finally started paying rent on her own, their 2 bed/1 bath in the Village would only be $309.15 under rent control, split between the two of them. How Monica pays rent on her own and still affords nice clothes before Rachel moves in is starting to make a lot more sense now, hmm? 

When the show ended in 2004, the most their rent could have been (assuming the apartment had been in Monica’s grandmother’s name since 1975) is $443.82/month. If we want to be really careful, we can assume that Monica’s grandmother has had the apartment since at least 1970, which would start the rent even lower. So yeah, yeah they totally could afford that apartment. 

If you want that math… 1975 rent is $150.
In 1977, becomes 161.25
In 1979, becomes 173.34 
In 1981, becomes 186.34
In 1983, becomes 200.32
In 1985, becomes 215.34
In 1987, becomes 231.49
In 1989, becomes 248.85
In 1991, becomes 267.52
In 1993, becomes 287.58
In 1995, becomes 309.15
In 1997, becomes 332.34
In 1999, becomes 357.26
In 2001, becomes 384.06
In 2003, becomes 412.86
In 2005, becomes 443.82. 

(It’s worth noting that residents could also protest the 7.5% hike if they felt that the building had code violations, or if the landlord wasn’t providing the legally guaranteed amenities. Obviously, Monica and Rachel are a) living there illegally and b) not particularly good at handling conflict, so they’re hardly going to protest if their rent increases. But they could.)

In S10E18, “The Last One Part 2,” Chandler confirms all of this by telling one of his new babies that their first home was a happy one, “but more importantly, because of rent control, it was a friggin’ steal!” 

Speaking of him, Chandler’s rent was likely a lot more, since he probably didn’t move into the apartment before 1987, around when he graduated from college. He consistently makes more money than Rachel until late in the show, and probably more than Monica too for a long time, so he can afford to pay a higher price, probably. We do know that in 1999 when Chandler moves in with Monica (S6E6), Chandler thinks $1500 would cover Joey for a couple months, but how believable this is depends on how much Chandler is trying to cover. Chandler could mean for $1500 to cover Chandler’s share of the rent for a couple months, meaning the rent might be around $1200/month, which is pretty reasonable for this area in the late 90s to early aughts. Average rent in NYC in 1999 had already soared to $3800, but around Park Slope, Crown Heights, and the Village prices were still hovering around $1000. Assuming Chandler signed a 1987 lease that set rent at around $800 (similar to the 1985 lease we talked about earlier), by 1999 it would have been $1234.64. Of course, the show’s running gag is that Chandler pays for everything for Joey which would make $1500 too low to truly cover him for more than a month. I guess here is where my friends are right.

So, there we have it. Let’s all go back in time and sign NYC leases in the 60s. 

All my average rent numbers come from Curbed NY. 

For more on rent control laws in NYC, Wikipedia has a good overview to start with.

Art by Aleksandar Savic.