M
ia Sinclair Jenness, a 19-year-old actress, has been navigating the challenges of her career and adulthood. After understudying in two Broadway productions and taking a leave from Pace University to focus on acting, she found herself at a crossroads. With no clear plan for after her current job ended, she considered buying an apartment as a "soft place to land." Growing up in Manhattan Plaza, an affordable-housing building in Hell's Kitchen, Jenness was accustomed to living out of suitcases and had saved her earnings in a Coogan account.

    She set a budget of around $475,000 with the help of her agent, Jessica Cloonan, and aimed to stay on the West Side of Manhattan near subways. Jenness wanted a building with a sense of community, similar to Manhattan Plaza, but also a younger vibe. She was open to a fixer-upper that she could personalize, given her unpredictable schedule.

    "We looked for places that were either older or hadn't been recently renovated," Cloonan said. With flexible subletting policies and a budget-friendly price tag, Jenness is searching for the perfect place to call home.