Step Inside the Mind of Caleb Simpson, the Viral Vlogger Touring New York Apartments

We recently caught up with Caleb Simpson on Zoom to learn more about what he really thinks about New York apartments, rent transparency, and human connection.

Clever: You get to see such a wide range of New York homes, have you noticed any common themes in the spaces you tour?

Caleb Simpson: One thing that everyone is always proud of is their bar cart. Everyone always tells me, ‘Go check out my bar cart!’ That’s like the third thing everyone says pretty much, which is funny to me. Another commonality is that if someone’s actually willing to do the apartment tour, they’re normally really excited to show off their space, and they’re proud of it. And roommates—most people have roommates and most people are like splitting the rent somehow, or they’re trying to figure out a deal, you know?

That’s something I enjoyed about your videos—the normalization of experiences that are a totally normal part of living in New York, but that people don’t always talk about. It’s reassuring. In one of your tours, the person showing their space has this giant, gorgeous apartment, but they won’t let you look into their laundry room…. That speaks to me. I have to ask, do people get to clean up first before they give the tour?

I leave it at whatever the person is comfortable with, so if they want to clean, I’ll let them clean up—I’m not trying to force anyone’s hand on anything. If there’s something they don’t want to show, I won’t show it. I feel like that’s what keeps the show alive, that whoever’s showing off their space feels comfortable. At the end of the day, millions and millions of people are seeing their home, so they’re taking a risk. When I’m talking to someone about doing a tour, sometimes they’ll tell me, “My apartment’s not cool.” And I’m like, “No, trust me, it is. You just don’t realize that you’re in a unique apartment.”