Apartment Hunting Advice (Cincinnati, Ada, Clifton: apartments, renting, home)

[KelliZee]

Hello realtors, Cincinnati dwellers, and anyone who may be able to offer advice on apartment hunting in a short time period. My husband and I are planning to move to Cincinnati on or around 01 August. We plan on renting for our first year until we find the neighborhood that is best suited to us. Once our home is under contract and before we make the move, I will travel to Cincinnati to apartment hunt.

My question is, would it be possible/recommended to get a realtor to show me around to the different apartments I find online, or is this something I will have to do on my own? My time will likely be limited to a week at most, and I want to ensure that I will be able to see everything I am interested in during that time. I know there is an application process for most places and I’m wondering what the average length of time it takes for that to process. Basically, I am hoping to go to Cincy, look at apartments, apply for the selected one, and be able to move in about two weeks later. Does anyone have long-distance apartment hunting experience similar to this, any recommendations, thoughts on how realistic I am being? I’ve not done the whirlwind apartment hunt before and I want to make sure I’m allowing sufficient time to accomplish what I need to.

If it matters, I am looking in fairly specific areas within the center of the city such as OTR, Downtown, Gaslight, and possibly Northside. We've narrowed it down a bit, so I won't be looking far and wide for a place for us.

Thank you in advance for your help!

[Cincygrad2015]

Hello and welcome to Cincinnati, I would look at urban sites for downtown/OTR and uptown rents for the Clifton area. Downtown/OTR you will have more young professional feel and Clifton gaslight Will
have a more college student feel. I would say if you cannot find anything in those sites I would highly recommend a realtor.

[NorwegianCat]

You can try CincyRents.com but they are mostly based on the eastside (Hyde Park, Mt Lookout, Mt Adams) with some listings in the city center.

[mimi in cinci]

I would recommend checking out Paradrome Properties. They have buildings in many of the places you’ve mentioned and also East Walnut Hills.

https://www.paradromeproperties.com/

[KelliZee]

Thank you, everyone for the advice. I will look at the suggested websites to prepare for my trip out there next month. I appreciate the input!