Mastering the First Apartment Hunt
You’ve done your inner soul searching and you know who you want to live with in your new pad AND how much dough you can cough up a month.
Nice one! So, uh, now what?
Step 1. Spread the Word
Well, the first thing to do is explore a little, big thing called “word of mouth.” Apparently, almost half of all available jobs aren’t even listed and you can bet the same goes for apartments. We get into it further in this old post all the way back in 2005 – but the same principles still apply! Seriously, not only tell everyone you know that you’re looking for an apt but blast it on social media as well. You never know who will re-post it for you — and who will ultimately see your plea for help.
Step 2. Pick Your Neighborhood
After you get the word out, think about where you and your roommate, ideally and realistically, want to live. Looking for an apartment can sometimes be a battle of the mind — sometimes things get so overwhelming that you want to settle for anything as long as you can FINISH YOUR SEARCH.
Eh, I have faith that you can hold out. Part of that is narrowing your options so you don’t go bonkers. Pick one neighborhood, pick two or three — but cap it there. Also, try to pick one geographic area so you’re not running all over the city. That’s another recipe for burnout.
Speaking of burn out, take some time to chill while you’re going through this process and give yourself props for all the little decisions you’re making. Just between last week and this week you should have decided who you want to live with, how much $ to spend, what neighborhoods to look in WHILE asking friends and fam for help.
Next week we’ll cover what to look for when you’re out hunting!
