How to Find an Apartment When You’re Moving Across the Country

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/10/smarter-living/find-apartment-cross-country-move.html

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Apartment hunting can feel like looking for a needle in a haystack, but put 2,000 miles between you and the haystack, and it turns into a seemingly impossible quest. If you’re moving to a faraway city, some careful planning can help you find a place to live.

When most people buy a house, they enlist the help of an agent to help advise them on the best neighborhoods, scour listings and streamline the process. You may not realize that some agents can help you find rentals, too — which is especially useful if you don’t know the city. “Many people just find something on Zillow or Craigslist and they take it,” said Jamie Pullman, a real estate broker with Downtown Condo Guys in San Diego. “They don’t know that they could have found a unit or area that would have been a much better fit for less money than they’re paying.”

Agents know the area well enough to help you find the right part of town, and they can do all the legwork setting up showings and vetting landlords before you even set foot in the city. Not only that, they’ll know the intricacies of that particular market, since so many things can vary by geographic location — including, for example, the cost of their services.

“We charge a small flat fee: half upfront, and then the other half after we have a fully executed lease,” said Mr. Pullman, whose services cost $1,500. But every market differs in how agents make their money. “In New York, the tenant pays the broker roughly 10 percent of the gross rent,” he said. “In other markets, like Austin, the apartment’s owner might pay one month’s rent to the broker who helps to place the tenant.” If you’re moving to a city where the owner pays the agent’s commission, enlisting that agent’s help is a no-brainer, since you don’t have to foot the bill.

Even if you’re moving to a city where the tenant pays the agent’s fee, check with your employer. Many employers may cover that cost, Mr. Pullman said, since it saves them the cost of putting you up in temporary housing while you hunt for a place yourself. Agents can help negotiate your rent and the lease terms, making up for the cost of their fee. Just make sure you hire someone with good reviews from past clients; Yelp is a good place to start, but if you know anyone in the city, word-of-mouth can go a long way.

Every city has its own flavor, but within any big city, you’ll find distinct neighborhoods, some of which may be better suited to you than others. Once you know what you want in an apartment, you’ll need to start narrowing down your search by location.

If you’re working with an agent, they can give you a wealth of information about the area. But if you’re going it alone, you’ll need to do some due diligence. Most big cities have their own subforum on sites like Reddit (for example, /r/Seattle or /r/Charlotte), where you can ask people what neighborhood might fit your needs and budgetary constraints. If you have friends in the city, give them a call and ask about their experiences. (Even if you don’t think you have friends in a given city, do a search on Facebook first — type “friends in Denver” into the search bar — and you might be surprised to find an old friend who moved there without you realizing.) If you’re moving for work, your new co-workers may be able to point you in the right direction.

Once you find a few areas you think might be a good fit, take your search a little deeper. Find the neighborhood on Google Maps and drag the yellow “Street View” guy to take a virtual tour. Google Maps can also give you an idea of your public transportation options, especially when it comes to your commute. Trulia provides great crime data with “heat maps” that show you riskier streets, and Walk Score will tell you how many restaurants, grocery stores and other attractions are nearby. Some of these things may be more important than others to you, but you get the idea: You don’t necessarily want to lock yourself into a neighborhood just because someone else said they liked it. You need to see if it’s a good fit for you.

It always helps to know what you want before you start the apartment search, but it’s doubly important when moving to a faraway city. If you take a long weekend to visit the city and look at apartments, you aren’t going to be flush with time to debate whether you really want in-unit laundry or a complex with its own gym. Come up with your list of “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves” now so you know what’s nonnegotiable later.

You may have to start looking at listings to see how those desires fit into your budget, too. Some amenities you’ve come to rely on may be much more expensive in the city you’re moving to. The usual sites like PadMapper, HotPads, Apartments.com and Trulia can help give you an idea of what’s available, but see if there are any regional sites in that area, too. When I moved to Los Angeles, for example, I had some of my best luck with Westside Rentals, which specializes in West Coast cities. New York City, on the other hand, has StreetEasy.

Don’t look too deeply into the listings just yet — after all, most of them will probably be gone by the time you move (unless you’re already down to the wire). Just poke around to see what kinds of apartments are available at what prices and if your list of must-haves is reasonable for the city. Even if you’re working with an agent, knowing what you want ahead of time will save you (and them) some headache.

Eventually, you’ll want to actually visit the city yourself and pound the pavement. “I don’t recommend renting an apartment sight unseen,” Mr. Pullman said. “I’ve had clients do it, but that would be a last resort.” (Some landlords won’t even let you do so.) Plan a long weekend (or if you can spare the time, a week) to visit the city and see apartments; if you’re working with an agent, they’ll line up listings for you beforehand. If not, you can set up viewings yourself before you leave.

Don’t start lining them up too early, though, or they’ll be gone by the time you actually arrive. Your timeline will differ from city to city, so you may have to ask around to see how quickly units get rented.

“Here in San Diego, when a unit is marketed, it’s usually available, and it’ll go quickly,” Mr. Pullman said. “The sweet spot is about two weeks. Other markets might lock down a place months in advance.” In Boston, he said, many companies will market an apartment well before it’s available, and it’ll be rented before the current tenants move out. So book your trip, find out what the typical window is, then start lining up your showings that many days or weeks before you head there. Be sure to check Yelp reviews for the building or sites like Rate My Landlord and Review My Landlord before you sign the dotted line.

If you plan on filling out an application while in town, bring all the necessary documentation with you. Mr. Pullman says this could include a credit report, recent pay stubs or bank statements, and — if you have pets — photos and service dog certification, if applicable.

If all else fails and you don’t have the time or budget to make a trip, Mr. Pullman still recommends waiting to sign a lease until you can spend time in the city. If that means crashing with friends or living in an Airbnb for a few weeks, then do so; you don’t want to get locked into a terrible lease for a year because the pictures looked “good enough.”

You could also try to find apartments that specialize in shorter-term leases or subletters who aren’t as strict about timelines. These can be harder to find but will allow you to search for a more permanent spot without feeling as rushed. If you can give yourself time to find the perfect neighborhood, you’ll have a much easier time settling into your new home city.