38 new york | february 1–14, 2021
s it goes in New York City,
the apartment was small, it was
expensive, but it was theirs.
Heidi Russell and Valentina
Bajada owned an 860-square-
foot second-floor walk-up, and
theyloveditssingleliving-room
window,crampedkitchen,and
two little bedrooms. Their
buildingwasona quiet, tree-
linedblockofBarrowStreet
close to the HudsonRiver.
Neighborskeptlibrariesoffree
booksandwalkedtheirdogsin
leafy, opencourtyards.It wasas
closetoa village astheWest
Villagegets.
Bajada,a Soviet immigrant
whoowneda cateringcom-
pany withherex-husband,
spenttenyearsona waiting
listbeforeshewasapproved
tobecomea tenantin1998,
backwhentheWestVillage Houseswerestillsubsidized.They
weretheresultofanaffordable-housingtriumphofthe’60s,
whenJaneJacobsdefeatedRobert Moses’splanstodemolishthe
neighborhoodandbuilda highway.Nowthey aremarket-rate
co-opsinoneofthemost upscaleneighborhoodsinManhattan.
BajadaandRussell,whomet in 2005 at ladies’nightat a bar
intheVillage, boughttheirplacein 2016 forjust over$450,000,
aninsiderrateofferedexclusivelytotenants.Like many oftheir
neighbors,thecouplecouldonlyreallyaffordtheirapartment
byrentinga pieceof it out.Bajada,55,hada chronicpaincondition
andnolongerworked;Russell,56,wasa fine-artphotographer
witha day jobasanexecutiveassistant.Theyputa listingon
Airbnb:“Reallyhistoricplace,” it read,withpicturesofa tidyspare
bedroomwitha redcurtain,a black-and-whiteprintofsnow-
coveredtrees,anda chandelier.
InDecember 20 18,a usernamedKatherineresponded.“Hi!
Yourplacelooks&soundslovely,” shewrote.“I’mwonderingif
youmightbeabletoaccept$65/nightinsteadofthe$95listed,
prettyplease? :) It’smeandmy very well-behaved10-year-old
daughter—we’relocal&outofourapt—shegoestoschoolat
P.S.3.We’dbevery low-keyandrespectful,clean&quiet!”
Thatfirst,short staywasuneventful,evenpleasant.Bajada
wasoutofthecountry, soRussellreceivedKatherineGladstone,
whowentbyKate,andherdaughter, Lily, alone.(Lilyis a pseud-
onym.)A tall42-year-oldbrunettewhosaidshewasa freelance
filmproducer, GladstonetoldRussellsheandherdaughterwere
or iginallyfromPittsburghandhadrecentlylost theirhomeinNew
York.Gladstonewaschattyandcharming.Sheevencleanedup
afterRussell’swhitepoodle,Abby, whenshemadea messof therug.
GladstonetextedRussella few moretimes,askingtorentthe
roomagain,butthingsneverworkedout.In June,Russelltold
Gladstonethat they neededsomeonetostayforlongerthana
fewnights—possiblythroughAugust. Theco-ophadcracked
downonAirbnbs,andmoney wasgettingtight;Russelland
Bajada’s maintenancefeeshadgoneup,andthey hadbeen
unabletorefinancetheloanthey’dtakenouttobuytheapart-
ment.Theywerelikelygoingtotry tosellbyyear’s end.Russell
andGladstoneagreed,bytextthistime,to$2,000inrent,pro-
ratedforthefirstmonth.Russellwasrelieved—untilshewent
downtolet Gladstoneintothebuildingandwasmet witha
surprise:a chestnut-coloredspanielnamedHappy,tucked
underGladstone’sarm.
“As soon as she started walking up the steps with the dog,
I knew I shouldn’t let her in,” Russell says now, almost two years
later. “But here was this woman with a dog and a kid. Where
were they supposed to go?”
New York roommate stories often begin with a kind of claustro-
phobic, reluctant symbiosis: Two people, linked solely by necessity,
nowalsohavetosharethesamebathroom.Here,findinga placeto
liveis sonotoriouslydifficult,thehuntsomythologicallycutthroat,
thatthepartiestendalsotobeunitedindesperation.Agreements
areforgedhastilyviatextmessage,intheDMs ofthird-party
apps,aslast-minutepromises.Owners,renters,subletters,sub-
subletters,Airbnbhosts,andCraigslistcouchsurfersalike learn
tosizeoneanotherupinrelationtotheirownneeds;howredthe
flagsappearoftendependsonhowbroke youare.ittooksixdaysforGladstonetoactuallypay forherfirst
month—shewaswaitingforsomemoney tocomethrough,then
fora cashloanfroma friend,whichbecamea checkFedExed
fromMiami.RussellwascordialbutexasperatedandtoldGlad-
stonethewholethingwasstartingtoseemlike a scam.Butthen
thecheckarrivedandcleared.Gladstoneapologizedprofusely
andpromisedthat thiswasalloutoftheordinary. “I startsteady
workagainnext week,” shetexted,“sogoingforward,thesecouple
dayswillbea distantmemory.”
Butconditionsonlydeteriorated.First, thingsgotcrowdedin
theapartment:Russell’smothercamedownfromupstatefora
seriesofdoctors’appointments,anda familyfriend,Tara,unex-
pectedlyintown,askedif shecouldcrashonthecouchfora few
weeks.Russellknew it mightberudetospringtheguests onher
newtenant,butshewasfeelingparanoidandwantedherpeople
around.“They’resweet—noprob,” GladstonetextedRussell,
clearlyannoyed.“ButI thinkit’s importanttocommunicate
aboutvisitors.” TheofficioustoneremindedRussellthat Glad-
stonehadaskedduringherfirststayif Russellcouldlet herknow
whenshewascomingintotheapartment,because“Lilysome-
timesgetsnervouswithsurprisenoises,” andthat Russellwas
nottodiscussanythingfinancialinfrontofthekideither. It was
allstartingtofeelpossessive.Onemorning,Tara,sleepingonthe
couch,woke uptofindanirritatedGladstonesittingonherlegs.
Russellknewtherule,aslandlordsdo:IfGladstonestayed
longerthan 30 days,shewouldbeprotectedbyNewYork’sten-
ancy laws.Shewouldratherscrambletolookforsomeoneelse
thanriskGladstonebeinglateonpaymentagain,shedecided.
OnJune24,shesentGladstonea textsayingshecouldnolonger
stay forJulyandAugust. Hermotherhadgottena spotina
surgery programat NYUtocorrect a bulgingdiscinherspine
andneededtheroom,plusRussellandBajadaneededtoready
theapartmentforsale.Thosethingsweretechnicallytrue,
thoughnotasimminentasRussellsuggested,andthenewswas
abrupt.ShewasgivingGladstoneandherdaughteronlysixdays
toleave.Fromthebedroomnextdoor, Gladstonedidn’t reply.
Thenextday, Russelldecidedtobringit upinperson,inher
narrowhallway, withhermotheranda friendpresent.Glad-
stoneclaimedsheneversawthetext;whenRussellredelivered
thenews,sheusheredLilyintothebedroom.“I couldlosecustody,”
Gladstonesaid,hervoicerising.Shewasina heateddivorceand
custodybattlewithherex-husband.“Youwillliterallyruinlives.”
Shesaidtheonlyway they wouldleavewasif Russellrefunded
the$1,650they hadpaidfortheirstay.
Atthispoint,Russellwasconsumedbya desiretodoevery-
thingexactlybythebook.Sheconsulteda lawyerwhohad
assistedherandBajadawitha previoustenantdispute,andhe
helpedherdrafta two-daynoticetellingGladstoneshehadto
gobyJune30.It’sdelivery wasanawkwardact oflegaltheater:
Theprocessserver,anunassumingyoungguy, sat onthecouch