After an impulsive move from California, a New York newcomer tested her $1.8 million budget in Manhattan’s loft-filled neighborhoods, willing to make improvements if the location was right. Here’s what she found.

Last year, Natalie Zamani and some of her California friends visited New York for a few months while working remotely. “We had so much fun,” said Ms. Zamani, 30, a senior software engineer, who had been living and working in San Francisco.

So much that she wanted to stay. It was easy enough for her to get a job transfer to New York, and last fall she considered taking the lease on a 550-square-foot one-bedroom in the West Village for $4,250 a month.

“It was not enough space for that amount of money,” she said. “I thought maybe I could get more value for my money by buying, because I plan to live in New York for the long term.”

While staying mostly with friends and in temporary rentals, Ms. Zamani set her sights on an industrial loft space with high ceilings and a spot for a big dining table where she could have dinners for friends. The number of bedrooms and bathrooms wasn’t important, “as long as the space was big enough to not be claustrophobic,” she said.

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Through Zillow, she found Jeff Gordon, a licensed salesman at Platinum Properties. “I was unfamiliar with the ins and outs of New York real estate,” Ms. Zamani said. “Jeff was understanding of what I was looking for and sent me amazing listings I couldn’t find myself.”

She kept an eye on downtown’s loft-filled neighborhoods: SoHo and surrounds. “The culture of downtown resonates with me,” she said. “Being an out trans woman, it’s important that I set down roots in a neighborhood I don’t feel out of place in.”

Most lofts for sale, in buildings dating from around 1900, cost upward of $2 million. Her budget topped out at $1.8 million, and most places in that range were in middling condition. She was willing to make improvements, as long as the location was to her liking.

“I found out that the New York market is not like anywhere else,” she said. “Even if I was asking friends and family who bought elsewhere, their experiences did not apply to buying in New York, so there was a lot I had to learn.”

For one thing, she didn’t realize that buying would take as long as it did. And she was surprised by the many transaction fees and taxes.

“When we started the process,” Mr. Gordon said, “I went over the closing costs, and for someone new to New York, those prices can be a bit of a sticker shock.”

SoHo Condo With Extra Bathroom

This 1,200-square-foot loft, in an elevator building, had 10-foot ceilings and was advertised as in “good estate condition.” There was a home office, an extra half bathroom and a view into the boutique next door. The asking price was $1.775 million (down from $1.95 million), with monthly charges of about $1,550 and two monthly assessments, for elevator and boiler work.

This NoHo loft was in an elevator building with a roof deck and a laundry room. The unit faced Broadway, with almost 1,200 square feet, 12-foot ceilings, an open kitchen, a separate sleeping area, exposed structural pillars and built-in shelving. The price was $1.295 million, with monthly maintenance of a little less than $2,700.

SoHo Co-op With Tin Ceilings

This SoHo loft was on the fourth floor of a walk-up building. It was around 1,500 square feet, with a long, open living space, a walk-in closet and 10-foot tin ceilings. There was a sleeping area, white-painted exposed brick and an in-unit washer-dryer. The price was $1.695 million, with monthly maintenance of $3,400.

Find out what happened next by answering these two questions:

SoHo Condo With Extra Bathroom

SoHo Co-op With Tin Ceilings

SoHo Condo With Extra Bathroom

SoHo Co-op With Tin Ceilings

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