This week on Brick Underground, our readers were looking for middle-income housing, exploring East New York's housing options and more. Below, the top five stories of the week:

1. Ask Sam: My landlord isn't cashing my checks and hasn't renewed my lease. Can I get away with not paying rent? (sponsored)

2. How can middle-income New Yorkers find affordable housing?

3. Trapped in my (non-stabilized) East Village apartment

4. Rezoning, new developments headed to East New York. Is now the time to buy?

5. Country house reality check: 4 lessons learned from a year of fixing up a fixer-upper