Moving to NOVA- Next Week! (Arlington: apartment, renter, college)

[michiganvirginia]

I'm a recent college graduate who has just accepted a job in Arlington across the street from the Courthouse Metro- something I'm really excited about but I have to move to the area in the next week and a half to start working. I'm pretty familiar with a lot of the Arlington area from trips in - at least those areas near metro stations- and have an idea about what the "desirable" areas are but any help I could get as to finding an apartment as soon as possible would be desired.

I feel like I've tried it all- the websites, apartment showcase, etc. but don't feel like I'm getting anywhere because everything I've looked at has income restrictions (which I will very narrowly not fall under), no vacancies, or it no where near my price range. I'm trying to stay as close to a thousand a month as possible (with twelve hundred being an absolute maximum) and all the "general" advice people give me hasn't been getting me anywhere. I'd like to be anywhere on the orange line or a bus that goes to courthouse if possible and any, more specific, information people can give me would be appreciated- because I'm getting a little desperate and it's making getting my first real job a whole lot less exciting.

Thank you in advance for any help!

[Tish Thompson]

Congrats on your graduation, new job, and big move Michigan! What price range do you want to stay within? There are lots of places available that don't have income restrictions.

[Yankeesfan]

I don't know the apartment rental market at all, but this site might be helpful to you. It seems to work best if you use the "Search Using Map" feature. Good luck to you! I came here straight out of college many years ago and loved it!

washingtonpost.com - Find an apartment for rent: DC, Maryland, Virginia - washingtonpost.com

[Veronique Trusal]

Welcome to the area! You will definitely love it here! Another suggestion is to check out Craigslist.com and see if you could possibly do shared housing until you get your feet on the ground, and get to know the area a little more. There are also rentals posted on that site.

All the best!

[Kalysta]

I agree with Veronique. On that kind of a budget (similar to mine) and needing that kind of location, shared housing is your best bet. Craigslist is good, you can place your own ads there, as well as respond to others.

Be prepared for it to possibly take awhile, though--both times I have searched for housing on Craigslist it has taken about a month--and at least twenty or thirty interviews with people who have places to rent--before I've found anyone willing to rent to me (and I have a stable gov't job and good references). This is just my personal opinion, but there sometimes seems to be a lot of prejudice in this area against people under the age of 25--I ran into a lot of people posting Craigslist ads, sadly, specifying "over 25" for a possible roommate....Which might make sense if the other occupant is 40 and the potential renter 19, but not if the occupant is 27 and the potential renter 23 or 24. Try to set up as many appointments to see places as possible, and always follow up with someone if you don't hear back from them by the time they said you would. If you do happen to be under 25 (but over 22, or almost) my suggestion would be to refer to yourself as "mid-twenties" in an ad or when responding to ads, and not disclose your specific age unless someone directly asks.

In addition to Craigslist, I would post a roommate listing on "Rent.com". Worst comes to worst, you can probably find a more affordable rent by living on the bus line to the metro, instead of directly on the metro line itself.