He could be paying far less than that for rent: I live on the upper west side of Manhattan and pay $1000/month and had a 15 minute commute before I switched job

He could be paying far less than that for rent: I live on the upper west side of Manhattan and pay $1000/month and had a 15 minute commute before I switched jobs. Further, somebody could also live and work in Brooklyn and pay more like $700/month in rent. (All of these figures are for apartments with roommates).