Finding an apartment in a new city

[savory]

Hi,

It looks like we will be moving to a new area sometime next year to be closer to the grandchildren. Oh, and their parents too. It is expected to be a long term move.

Our desire is to find a rental. We live on the other side of the country from the city we will be moving so searching for the place will need to be done in a visit or two. If it were a home, I would reach out to a realtor. But with a rental property, I am not sure exactly how to proceed.

Online, I have seen rental management companies that will help with their various properties but I have not noticed realty companies that offer apartment finding service. And, I do not know who pays the fee to the realtor for their apartment finding efforts, the renter or the property.

If you know how this works or have suggestions for proceeding that have worked for you, it would be much appreciated to hear from you.

 

[njhowie]

There are apartment websites in the major cities. For instance, in NYC area streeteasy.com is a big player. Listings may be fee free, or there may be a fee from the renter - the listings will say, and you can filter by those which do not have any fees.

I would find the website which caters to the city you're moving to, find a couple of apartments that interest you, and reach out to a couple of the listing agents. They will likely be able to take you to what you're interested in when you visit.

 

[euro]

You will likely get much better answers if you can disclose the city you are looking to move to. These things are very local and every place has different customs as to how things are handled with regard to who handles rental listings, who gets paid by whom and for what types of services, etc.
Someone who lives in (or has direct experience with) the particular location, is best able to provide useful answers. The rest of us are just making wild (and probably pretty useless) guesses.

 

[njhowie]

Try Trulia:
https://www.trulia.com/

 

[Bigdawg]

Umm, if your grandkids live there I can assume your children live there also. I am also assuming they know the area. Can't/shouldn't they be able to be of the most help with this investigation? Ask their realtor. They either bought a home or are renting in the area.

 

[Aerides]

I would ask your kids for some recommended neighborhoods, then plan on finding a short term rental (think extended stay suites type of place) for a month or so to get started. Then pair up with a rental realtor once in town.

 

[steelyman]

I would ask your kids for some recommended neighborhoods.

That’s good. I was advised on where to stay away from (in Durham) by people familiar with the area. They were right.

I live somewhere else, but there are nice areas in Durham NC too.

 

[braumeister]

Thread closed by request.