Abba_S
Chances are that the small basement apartment for $800 is illegal. Students should not e helping landlords to break the law. Unlikely to have a Certificate the apartment will not have its own legal mail and may have substandard and/or dangerous construction done by unlicensed contractors and never inspected by the city.
I remember my middle child moving to Brooklyn and showing me prospective basement apartments as possibilities. As soon as I asked to see the Certificate of Occupancy the landlords ended the conversation.
and why you consider a basement apartment whose windows are at street level secure is questionable…..