Suggestions to find a rental home? (Atlanta: house, neighborhood, buying)

[kangarooster]

I'm considering a move to the Atlanta area to take a temporary job that could turn into something permanant. Since I'm not too familiar with the city and there's a chance I could be leaving in a year or two, I think I'd like to rent a home (vs. buying). My hubby and I have 3 dogs and 2 cats, so the property obviously must be pet-friendly.

Does anyone know of reliable sources to find a pet-friendly rental home? How far in advance should I be looking? If I make the move, it will be in June or July.

I'm not a local, and probably would only have a few days to travel to see properties in person. I've seen some listings online through various relators, etc., but noticed that a lot of properties have application fees associated with them ($30-50 per property, per PERSON, ouch!). Is this normal? I've never had to pay application fees for a rental before. Any tips to avoid racking up $100's in application fees?

Thanks in advance!

[DeEtte]

Considering all your pets, you would need a house with a fenced yard. Your best bet is to contact a local Realtor in the area of Atlanta you are interested in. Each property sets their own application fee and standards - so you'll find different prices and requirements.

Realtors have access to more property than you can find on rental search sites or craigslist and have the expertise to guide you into a suitable area for commute times and the activities you and your husband might be interested in.

FYI: Steer clear of anyone who wants to charge you a upfront fee. Reputable Realtors and Locators are paid by the property owners to find tenants and are not paid anything from the tenant.

I hope you like our city and good luck with your move.

[JasonPaul]

You could try Craigslist there are alot of folks renting out their homes right now.

atlanta all housing wanted classifieds - craigslist

[kaabye]

What price range are you looking at and what types of things appeal to you as far as housing (suburbs, intown, quite, fast paced, land)?

[mlv289]

Be careful with the application fees. I recently rented my home out and did not charge one, but heard stories of individuals getting pictures off of sites, representing the home as theirs, taking the application fees and then nothing is ever heard back. And the phone number provided, well it was no longer in service when trying to contact the "landlord". Pretty easy scam actually....

[kangarooster]

Originally Posted by kaabye

What price range are you looking at and what types of things appeal to you as far as housing (suburbs, intown, quite, fast paced, land)?

I'm just starting to crunch the numbers, but I think our price range will be between $1000-1400/month. I'd like to stay on the lower end if possible so we can start saving for a down payment when we decide to buy. Maybe 3br (or 2br with an extra office space) and 1.5-2 bath. We would love a quiet neighborhood, preferably with some privacy between neighbors. Most important is having a good-sized yard for the dogs (we have 3, plus 2 indoor cats). I don't know if I'd prefer intown or suburbs...never lived in either.

I don't mind a bit of a commute (maybe 30-40 minutes or so), but traffic scares the s*** out of me. My husband and I are from the midwest, and we've never really had to deal with traffic before. My hubby might be working in Athens, in which case commuting will be in both of our futures.