Why does being a renter mean you aren't a human being? (Billings: apartment, houses)

[MTGardynGirl]

I am at the end of my rope! I need some answers and fast. We've been trying to find a place to rent for the last two weeks. My husband has been dealing with the work comp people for nearly two years, and hasn't worked since last July. I have a good job, full time, I just can't afford the place we're in anymore on my income alone, plus the 45 mile commute each way, every day.
I've been all over craigslist, most of the posts don't have basic info, like price or pet policy, no one ever responds to emails for more info, or they don't answer their phones or return calls.
We paid $30 each at Rainbow Property Management to apply. They told me that I had enough "points" to move into a 3 bedroom apt all utilities paid, but my husband couldn't live with me because of his "points." They told me what our combined points would get us. We drove around town. Every new dump was worse than the last! I don't think we should has to live next door to a meth lab. To get something for $50 more a month I have to come up with $300 more in a deposit. That's an $800 deposit for a $500 a month apartment. Even better, our applications expire on the 14th of November, so if we don't find something by then, we have to pay another $60.
We had a house ready to move into in Worden, I went out to give the guy our deposit and in the course of our conversation it came up that we smoke. We have never smoked INSIDE, but he freaked out. He demanded another $200 in deposit and said he would have to be able to come by anytime to check up on us. I said fine. I have nothing to hide and I'm not a liar. He never asked, we didn't think it was a big deal so we didn't say anything. He called that night at 9pm and told me he wouldn't rent to us. This was after we had rented a storage unit AND started taking carloads to it, and extra 40 miles every day for me. This was a week after he met both of us.
So, there you have it. We are a mature couple with long rental history, 4 years in each of our last places. We smoke. Outside. We have a14 year old spayed cat who spends most of her time passed out on MY furniture.
So are we ax murderers or what?
If anyone knows of an old fashioned, look you in the eye and shake your hand kind of landlord I'd love to meet them. Any rentals agencies that aren't just out to punish poor people?
Do we just give up and live in our car?

[jasper12]

Sorry about your situation. Look on CL for someone renting their basement out. Stay away from property managers, apt complexes, rent under the table and stay off the grid.

[happiness is]

Forget Craig's list. It's full of scams and con artists. In the past when I rented, it was always directly from the property owner, not a management company. Find the property owners who rent.

I have found the most successful way to find a good fit for your rental needs is to advertise yourself in the classifieds for "Wanted To Rent". There are plenty of good property owners out there who do not go through management companies.

Another way I found an excellent property that I rented for 8 years, is to look for empty houses and go to the county clerk and recorder to find the owner of the property. Contact that owner and see if they will rent. Sometimes it will be in an estate, and the heirs would rather have it occupied rather than sitting empty.

Put an ad in your local area newspaper classifieds under "Wanted to Rent" and describe your situation. Then you can weed out the responses yourself and contact only the legitimate landlords directly.

[NDak15]

Your best bet is to stay away from apartment managers whenever possible. I have had bad luck with the last two out of three I have rented from. I have also known others who do pretty much think their tenants are less than human. What part of Montana are you in anyway? If you are in Bozeman or Missoula I can tell you some to stay away from.

[MTGardynGirl]

We're living in Fromberg now, in a house that breaks down more and more every month, looking to get closer to Billings, the gas is killing me.

[NDak15]

I would check out the local papers in Laurel or Billings. I don't imagine there is much in Bridger but it might be worth a look.

[purehuman]

MTGardynGirl.....next place you look at....don't tell them you smoke....and don't tell them you have a cat...sometimes nice guys finish last.

[tickyul]

I would not rent to any filthar**te smokers either, that is just me, cannot blame the guy who turned you down.

[MTSilvertip]

If you are already driving from Fromberg, Check out Park City, Columbus or even Roundup for more sympathetic landlords. There may not be a lot of rentals available in the small towns, so it may take some looking, or you could hang a flyer in the cafes and gas stations to let folks know you are looking. In small towns, advertising is mostly word of mouth.

There are biased people everywhere, and smoking and animals are about the only reasons left that you can be descrimiated against.

[Timberwolf232]

I rent, and also own a rental. Bad tenants can really make a landlord question everything. I'm hoping our new tenants are good. Our last ones broke the toilet flange on a newly tiled bathroom floor, waited 2 weeks to tell us, and on a sunday demanded a plumber at my expense or they were going to call the health department. (The same renters also called me at 11PM one night, intoxicated, demanding that I come down because the light bulb burned out in the kitchen and she demanded I buy a new bulb... really??) I went and fixed the toilet, in about 15 minutes and about $20 worth of parts. They were also smokers, and used the underside of my porch for an ash tray, and also decided that they were going to start burning their garbage in the fire pit instead of paying for garbage collection. The house also smelled like smoke, even though they "promised" to smoke outside.

I'm not saying you are like the people mentioned above, but it's people like that that make landlords paranoid. (My wife smokes, outdoors or in the garage only, and is very neat about cleaning up her butts... so I don't hate smokers, but it is a big red-flag for a landlord.)

In the place I'm renting now, if something breaks, I fix it, at my own expense most of the time.. Just like you would if you owned the place. I guess that's just how I am. (I've owned my house for 12 years, and recently moved, and can't afford to buy a place until I can get mine sold... Kind of tough to do that at the moment. I am used to owning my own house though.. Maybe that's the difference. People tend to take care of things better when they have to pay for the expenses.