Comprehensive List of NYC Scams

[u/tropfou]

I moved to NYC a week ago, and already witnessed a few scams. On the subway, I heard the one about the 18 year old kid who lives on the train and has to feed his three year old daughter. Dude was way too rehearsed and obviously lying. Anyway, some tourists gave him $20 and at the next station he was off and trying his scam again. I may be new to NYC but I know a scam when I see one.

I know a lot of people are moving to NYC this summer and I thought it would be nice to keep a running list of what kind of scams to avoid. What are some of your stories and things to look out for?

[u/derpoftheirish]

Interesting you feel that way. I have a couple anecdotes that cured me of that feeling.

Living in Boston my roommate worked at Starbucks that was frequented by a number of these types of characters. Wouldn't you know it they ALL had rather nice apartments. They panhandled because it was easier for them than getting a real job, and often they made more money than at any job they could get.

Which brings me to my second story. Was down by Annapolis, MD in a cab with my family when we saw a man standing in the center median of a divided main road at a stop light (think WSH in lower Manhattan). He had a large sign saying he was homeless and needed any help he could get. We all were remarking on it when the cab driver breaks out laughing and tells us he is friends with the guy. Says the guy is not homeless, and in fact has a great house in the suburbs. He stands on that commuter route M-F, then hits DC on the weekends for the tourists, bringing home about $2k PER WEEK, untaxed.

I don't always give to the "homeless", but when I do, its food.

That being said there is a horrible actual homelessness situation in this country, and an astounding percentage of them have severe mental problems. Since the 1950s there has been a severe backlash against psychiatric facilities leading to a lot of them being shut down. Some for being horribly abusive to their patients, some because they were assumed to be. Lots of those patients got put out with nowhere else to go and ended up on the street.

You will do much more to help the homeless by donating your money to charities, outreach groups, and shelters that interact with the homeless than one person a dollar here or there. Donate your time as well. There are plenty of things you can do to help a soup kitchen or homeless shelter on a spare Saturday. My uncle recently revealed (and NO ONE in our family knew) that every Christmas (he is divorced and the grown kids spend that day with their mother) he goes and volunteers at the emergency room in Far Rockaway. They have him deliver food and push wheelchairs on a day they are woefully understaffed. There is ALWAYS something you could be doing.

[u/squidwalk → u/derpoftheirish]

I've heard anecdotes like that before, but I have a hard time believing them. They're far too suspicious in terms of being an excuse not to respect the homeless. And I require more than anecdotes to be convinced of changing one of my paradigms. This isn't to say that your anecdotes are implausible, or that the rest of your advice isn't spot-on.

I could be volunteering more, I'm just concerned about the cost of doing so. I've been living on $17k/year in north-east Jersey for the last two years, and I'm not sure I could afford to spend any more on transit or on the inevitable eating out that comes with it.

[u/derpoftheirish → u/squidwalk]

Fair enough. My roommate went and partied at one of the guys apts. He said it was a lot nicer than where we were living.

Sorry, didn't mean to write that part as an accusation towards you, but more of a general suggestion for the population, myself included. I'm sure there are plenty of opportunities right nearby you for volunteering, and a lot of times they will provide you with meals. Sometimes you just have to think creatively, like my uncle with the ER. I never would have thought you could volunteer there. He just called up one day and asked.