How did you out of staters find housing?

[SUNY DOWNSTATE]

Did you use craigslists?
What precautions did you take if you didn't visit the site in person ?

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[bucks2010]

I would highly advise against using Craigslist. It was next to impossible to find a decent place on there, at least in my area. I would check out other real estate sites like Zillow or perhaps some locally-run websites with apartment listings.

 

[TheGloaming]

I would highly advise against using Craigslist. It was next to impossible to find a decent place on there, at least in my area. I would check out other real estate sites like Zillow or perhaps some locally-run websites with apartment listings.

Craigslist has worked very well for me in the past but you really have to be careful and sift through a lot of junk postings. I agree that the effectiveness of craigslist is probably very area-dependent.

 

[Beekachu]

Did you use craigslists?
What precautions did you take if you didn't visit the site in person ?

I'm interested in this, too. Is it fairly common for people to lease a place site-unseen for the first year?

I've found a couple places that I like and I like the neighborhood from what I saw when visiting the school, but it makes me uneasy to sign a lease without seeing the actual apartment in person. And I don't know if I will have the time/money to take another trip for viewing apartments.

Thanks for the input!

 

[quarrelsometofu]

If it's at all possible, I would strongly suggest apartment hunting in person. I set up viewings with apartments I found on Craigslist, and I found that the impressions I got from the Craigslist postings were generally highly inaccurate. In person, I actually hated the apartment I had thought looked best on Craigslist, and ended up loving an apartment that seemed pretty unremarkable online. If you can't personally check the apartments out, do you have family/friends in the area that would help you? If you or someone you know can't physically examine the apartment, I'd say your best bet is finding a large apartment complex (with standardized rooms) that many med students live in. If lots of med students live there, it's probably a good bet, at least for your first year.

 

[ejw5075]

Realtor.

 

[Cinclus]

Realtor.

Yup. This is what we're doing. It's the best way to protect yourself against scams.

 

[bucks2010]

I'm interested in this, too. Is it fairly common for people to lease a place site-unseen for the first year?

I've found a couple places that I like and I like the neighborhood from what I saw when visiting the school, but it makes me uneasy to sign a lease without seeing the actual apartment in person. And I don't know if I will have the time/money to take another trip for viewing apartments.

Thanks for the input!

What's worse, spending some $ to check out apts in person, or saving the cash but being stuck with an awful apartment possibly in an unsafe neighborhood for a year?

All of the Craigslist postings we checked out in person looked great online. In person -- much different story, in every case. I'm talking mold in the bathtub, walls yellowed from cigarette smoke bad. Some listings even used stock photos so the actual apartment bore no resemblance to the unit in the photos. Do not be duped into a bad deal by leasing something without seeing it.

 

[mvenus929]

I moved into a place site unseen. Basically, I found someone who was already living in town (she happened to be a rising second year at the time) and asked to be her roommate.

Does your class have a facebook group? That's where a bunch of rising first years have been finding housing as upperclassmen post the apartments they still have rooms in or are moving out of.

 

[ejw5075]

The best part of using a realtor to find a rental property is it's usually free to you. The property manager will pay a finder's fee to the realtor for bringing tenants in and you have someone in the area doing the footwork for you. Everybody wins.

True story.

I moved from PA to FL without ever seeing my apartment (other than online) and had an awesome experience.

 

[hockey10]

Craigslist sucks, I can't tell you how many offers I had from people who "suddenly moved to Africa' and wanted me to wire money overseas. Usually the local paper is a good resource, thats where I found my apartment. The best thing you can do is go to the city on a Wednesday or Thursday and spend the following few days looking.

 

[illegallysmooth]

I got a discounted rate at a cheap hotel and stayed there while looking for an apartment. Yes, with all my stuff. And my boyfriend. And his stuff. And his cat. And my dog.

I do not recommend this approach.

 

[SUNY DOWNSTATE]

Thanks for the replies guys.
I just don't have the time( full time work schedule) or resources to fly out to NY and look for housing.

Anyone know anything about brooklyn please pm me or post on this thread. Help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[MedPR]

Thanks for the replies guys.
I just don't have the time( full time work schedule) or resources to fly out to NY and look for housing.

Anyone know anything about brooklyn please pm me or post on this thread. Help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

A bunch of people suggested using a realtor. Just google for realtors in the area and make some phone calls.

 

[Optomchick]

Did you use craigslists?
What precautions did you take if you didn't visit the site in person ?

Some schools have their own version of craigslist that is only for students and needs a reference to post. Also I found crimemapping.com to be a great site, I checked the site last minute before signing a lease and it turns out the house I almost signed for was smack in the middle of a high crime zone...no wonder the place was such a good price >.>

 

[medkitty85]

I keep getting rejected by roommmates on Craigslist, most recent one for being too Catholic for their taste. I'm assuming as things get closer to the start and people get more desperate for someone to cover the other half of their lease/rent they'll be less picky. Still it's a little scary to be hanging out in limbo while I look.