How to find a rental/landlord that will take on transplants (Seattle: apartment complexes, renters)

[sdditcher]

My husband and I are relocating in September and I have been feverishly looking for a house to rent. I have noticed however that many landlords don't want to work with transplants, they want local renters. When you say you are relocating and arriving a specific date they stop responding. How do I get someone to work with me? Should I just not mention the fact that we're relocating?

[seasallyttle]

You may have to wait until you get here and look (go into temp housing) or rent an apartment remotely and then look once you are here. The rental market here is tight and it's still summer which makes it worse. There can be bidding wars on rental houses, sadly. It's kind of nuts.

[Seacove]

If you are a landlord and have a choice between several local renters and one moving to the area, which would you choose?

[mkarch]

There's no abundance of rental houses available close to Seattle, so any negatives like "not local" can put you out of consideration.

Get used to the idea now that you'll likely need to move twice - once into whatever you can find coming from out of state, then into a house when you can find one. That's just how it is in this market. Make things easier on both of you by having realistic expectations.

[eightbitguy]

Originally Posted by mkarch

There's no abundance of rental houses available close to Seattle, so any negatives like "not local" can put you out of consideration.

Get used to the idea now that you'll likely need to move twice - once into whatever you can find coming from out of state, then into a house when you can find one. That's just how it is in this market. Make things easier on both of you by having realistic expectations.

Honestly, that's how it is in any market. Unless you have a local person to scope houses for you AND an exact move in date, you'll have a hard time moving anywhere from far away.

[GraceKrispy]

Apartment complexes might be your best bet. Traveling here to pick out something can help a lot, but it's still a tough market.

[Europeanflava]

Originally Posted by eightbitguy

Honestly, that's how it is in any market. Unless you have a local person to scope houses for you AND an exact move in date, you'll have a hard time moving anywhere from far away.

This.

[CrazyDonkey]

Or, look for a house in less competitive areas, with the idea of either staying for a year or negotiating a lease-buyout if you find a house in a more preferred area.

One of the issues with renters from afar is that the assumption is that they are looking for a lily-pad. Landlords prefer long-term renters and don't want to have to be re-renting the same property three to six months later. In areas where there is more of a renter's market, however...

[YankeeRacersFounder]

My wife and I recently relocated here from Kansas City. We had no jobs and three very large dogs. That's two serious strikes against us. We do have a decent little nest egg and excellent credit. We put up shop in a hotel for about five days and scoured the internet and walked through neighborhoods we were interested in living, looking for 'For Rent' signs. By the fifth day we had three different places to choose from. We ended up in a house right near the Alaska Junction for under $2k. I'd suggest you find a rental on Airbnb or plan on living in a hotel for a week. This will give you some time to scope out possibilities. It just took effort and perseverance for us. We turned over ever rock in our search. Airbnb has long term rental possibilities, too. You can book for a whole month if necessary. In hindsight, we'd have preferred to try that instead of a hotel. I agree with the posters above, you really do need to be here if you hope to find a place. Good luck!!!

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by sdditcher

My husband and I are relocating in September and I have been feverishly looking for a house to rent. I have noticed however that many landlords don't want to work with transplants, they want local renters. When you say you are relocating and arriving a specific date they stop responding. How do I get someone to work with me? Should I just not mention the fact that we're relocating?

Try the property management companies.