The most coveted hand-me-down

A good apartment is the most valued of all things passed on

Of all the things that are passed on in New York—the names of good hairstylists, restaurant recommendations, professional contacts and parking secrets—perhaps the rarest and most valued is a good apartment. Who, in need of a new home, doesn’t thrill to the news of a vacancy in a friend’s building?

Two years ago, Nick Moran was on the receiving end of such good fortune. A friend with a two-bedroom in Astoria, Queens, was moving in with his girlfriend on the Upper West Side and asked if Mr. Moran, now 31, would like to take over the lease.

Mr. Moran, a musician who