Thread: apartment hunting

so i need to find myself an apartment like yesterday but i dont know how /where to start besides craigslist

could use advice / tips

Search Google for apartment finding websites. That's how I found my current one. Also look around at stores and such for apartment magazines

Apartments for Rent: #1 Finder & Guide | Apartments.com

This isn't so much a tip on finding a place, but once you do, protect yourself against shady landlords.

Take pics of anything wrong with the place on day one, no matter how small. Carpet stains, broken hinges on doors/cupboards, holes in walls, scuffs, appliances, etc. They will nickel and dime you to get your security deposit, but the worst part is when they try and charge you past your security deposit for stuff that was wrong when you first move in, and they try to blame it on you. Report stuff like that immediately in writing, and send it certified mail so you can establish a paper trail.

I've had unusually bad luck with landlords and property managers so I may be a bit overly cautious, but it never hurts to be careful. They don't want to spend money to fix anything, if something is wrong they try to blame you, and they will do everything in their power to take your security deposit. My last place I was at with my brother was horrific when we first moved in (all hidden stuff we didn't know about when we looked at the place). It looked awesome when we looked at the place, but we didn't check it out thoroughly enough cause there was tons of stuff wrong with it. There were mice in the walls from previous tenants, there were holes in the cupboards where the mice could get in from the outside, the dryer was so full of lint (the previous tenants didn't know you had to empty the lint trap) that it was a fire hazard, the carpets had dog piss that the owner covered up with febreeze when we saw the place, the plumbing was garbage and there were leaks that never got fixed (but they were covered up with latex paint that matched the color of the walls), the sinks were clogged from never having been cleaned, the heater vents were clogged from never having been cleaned (we moved in during the summer so that's something you don't think to check), the pipes under the fridge were caked with years of dust and mouse droppings from never having been cleaned. The garage door wasn't properly installed and the brackets on one side broke of while opening, the screen door on the back door fell off shortly after moving in...the list goes on and on and on - the place was falling apart but you don't notice alot of those things if you're not looking for them - so make sure you're thorough when you see the place before you sign anything - they will do everything they can to lock you in.

It was a 3-bedroom townhouse that me and my roomies got and we cleaned the hell out of that place; probably spent a grand of our own money between the 3 of us getting the sinks/fridge/vents/dryer cleaned, carpets steam cleaned, garage door fixed, mice eradicated, droppings and holes sanitized and repaired...and the landlord still had the nerve to take the majority of our $1300 security deposit for things like "scuff on wall needed to be painted over" and "carpets needed to be steam cleaned again" and other b.s. like that, when it was undeniably in substantially better condition then we moved in.

Originally Posted by deputyfestus

Apartments for Rent: #1 Finder & Guide | Apartments.com

problem is there are hundreds of those sites any one can claim to be the #1 site

and i dunno studio or 1 bedroom sometimes the studios are cheaper sometimes the 1 bed rooms

i need to get this done fast they want me to pay 684$ a month for this crappy place im in now and 558 in back rent for october when i let them know i found a job at the end of september probably and dated the letter left on my door on the 29th as the 19th

I'm glad to be in a little french speeking province like ours. We have basically only 2 major website here that everyone use for those kind of search. That makes it easy when everyone use the same services. They are Kijiji and Lespac, but I doubt they are popular outside Quebec or if they even exist outside of here.

Originally Posted by moving-target

problem is there are hundreds of those sites any one can claim to be the #1 site

and i dunno studio or 1 bedroom sometimes the studios are cheaper sometimes the 1 bed rooms

i need to get this done fast they want me to pay 684$ a month for this crappy place im in now and 558 in back rent for october when i let them know i found a job at the end of september probably and dated the letter left on my door on the 29th as the 19th

Look you just asked for help finding a crib that's the service they provide as for their #1 rating I'm sure they would happily provide that Gallop poll or independent survey to substantiate their claim.

well dont think they do a very good job they gave

Warren Inn

Vista Alegre Apartment Hom

4 and 5 stars i googled them and found a bunch of horrible reviews on them

your local newspaper..... maybe?