[Autum1031]

My family (myself, husband & now 4 year old) moved to the area last fall for my job, which is in Somers, NY. We're currently renting a house in western Danbury but we're scouting ahead for a different town with a better school district for when my son enters kindy in a year or so. We find that we spend a lot of time in Ridgefield, so I've been keeping an eye on the listings there.

In the past 2-3 months I've seen almost no houses up for rent that would fall within our budget, which is ideally $3,000 or less a month for a 3 bedroom. I know much of Ridgefield is affluent and too pricey for us, but there's a fairly substantial amount of more affordable homes, too. Do these just never go up for rent? Am I just looking at a bad time (winter / early spring?) I seem to recall that when I was initially looking with an agent last July/August that I saw more options, though not a ton. If our budget is completely unrealistic for this town then I'll need to start focusing my attention elsewhere.

Thanks!

[Stylo]

Rentals in general aren't that plentiful in Ridgefield.

Maybe this? 6 Barry Avenue, Ridgefield, CT 06877 - HotPads

Pushing the budget a bit: http://hotpads.com/rentals/51-Mamana...uping=building

Ridgefield is going to be quite a bit pricier than Danbury to rent in.

[beer belly]

Have you checked for Condo's ?. How about purchasing ?....there are affordable areas to purchase (I haven't looked, but have heard) that may be within your budget.

[Lalalally]

Stylo is right -- Ridgefield has a much higher percentage of owner occupied homes than Danbury does, so rentals will be harder to find. I would suggest establishing a relationship with a realtor in town who can watch the market closely for you (if you don't have the time to do it daily), and alert you as soon as something becomes available. I would imagine things move quickly in that town at that price point, just because it's a great town and there are not that many rentals to begin with. Good luck

[Autum1031]

This brings up another excellent point: is it required out here to have a realtor just to rent a home or condo? I was lucky enough to have a realtor during my initial house search process, since it was a relocation benefit from my new job, but I'm sure it was expensive. I'm from an area in the Midwest where it's not at all typical to need a realtor when renting. Do I absolutely need one? If so, does anyone know how much they typically cost--or should I direct this to the Real Estate forum?

[Lalalally]

No absolutely not for a rental. One could make the experience easier though, especially if you don't have the time to focus on reviewing daily listings in a very desirable town like you're looking at. For a sale/purchase though, I personally wouldn't touch that on my own without a realtor in my corner, though some people do do it solo. But no, one is not a must/requirement.

I really hope you find what you're looking for -- Ridgefield is an absolutely lovely town, and Danbury-area is a great place to call home. Good luck to you and keep us posted!

P.s. On the buyer/renter end, it costs you nothing to engage a realtor -- the seller/landlord pays the commission. No out-of-pocket realtor expense or commission that you will personally be responsible for.

[beer belly]

You may want to consider a Realtor. I would think that folks in that type of area would use a Realtor to screen those that may want to rent their property......remember, you're dealing with Danbury types

[Autum1031]

I knew about not incurring Realtor expenses as a buyer, but really-- there is no fee to use a Realtor as a renter? That surprises me. In which case, I would definitely use one. It was wonderful to have that assistance when we were first looking.

[ABritInBrooklyn]

Originally Posted by Autum1031

I knew about not incurring Realtor expenses as a buyer, but really-- there is no fee to use a Realtor as a renter? That surprises me. In which case, I would definitely use one. It was wonderful to have that assistance when we were first looking.

I was astonished by that too! In NYC, you can (and do!) pay 15% of the annual rent to a broker to find you a space. That the landlord pays in CT was a huge bonus, we will definitely use a broker. I'm sure the best properties never get listed, they are gone immediately. That's certainly been my experience in London and Brooklyn - although not sure how CT compares!

[JayCT]

You will only have to pay for a realtor in the most demanding rental markets like New York where they can get away with it. Here in Connecticut that is not the practice. Jay