Oxnard - Renting apartments help. (Port Hueneme: apartment complexes, renters, insurance)

[GeekUSA]

I have been planning my move to Oxnard for close to a year, and now I'm less than a month away. For the past 3 months I have been checking craigslist two or three times a day trying to find an apartment that I can afford, has a garage, and allows dogs.

This is much harder than you would think, so now that it's crunch time I'm starting to get worried. The dog will by my roommates which is a 80lb Staffordshire Terrier. So as you can see I'm climbing an uphill battle, just to get the dog accepted on a lease, much less find one that is affordable, and has a garage.

My budget will allow for a maximum of $800 a month in rent + utilities.

So I have been looking at apartments 2BR / 3BR with a max rent of $1500 as that is what I can consider affordable and within my budget.

So here's my question. Say I do spend 3 days driving to California, how are the options for rentals once I arrive, that are not already posted on the internet?

I'm using padmapper, mapskrieg, and just good old fashioned craigslist.

So far in 3 months I have found 4 places that fit the bill, so I'm more than nervous at this point.

Thanks for the help,

[Snort]

Try here: Oxnard Apartments for Rent - Oxnard Apartments Reviews and Ratings

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by GeekUSA

My budget will allow for a maximum of $800 a month in rent + utilities.

So I have been looking at apartments 2BR / 3BR with a max rent of $1500 as that is what I can consider affordable and within my budget.

So here's my question. Say I do spend 3 days driving to California, how are the options for rentals once I arrive, that are not already posted on the internet?

I'm confused. You say your budget is $800/mo. rent plus utils., but then say you've been looking at apartments for $1,500 as that is your max budget.

Your first figure is more in line with what a room in a house rents for. Since you have a dog, this might be your best option, anyway. Not many apartments allow dogs. I have cats and was looking around for a place a few years ago, so I have some idea.

If your budget is $1,500/mo. (remember, I'm confused), why not look at renting a small house? That's definitely the low end of what houses might rent for, but not out of the question.

But back to apartments and the final point of yours that I quoted, you should be able to find immediate openings as many buildings are advertising vacancies.

Next step: which areas of Oxnard are you considering? Have you researched the city? Plenty of info here on C-D, but feel free to ask anyway.

[GeekUSA]

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

I'm confused. You say your budget is $800/mo. rent plus utils., but then say you've been looking at apartments for $1,500 as that is your max budget.

Your first figure is more in line with what a room in a house rents for. Since you have a dog, this might be your best option, anyway. Not many apartments allow dogs. I have cats and was looking around for a place a few years ago, so I have some idea.

If your budget is $1,500/mo. (remember, I'm confused), why not look at renting a small house? That's definitely the low end of what houses might rent for, but not out of the question.

But back to apartments and the final point of yours that I quoted, you should be able to find immediate openings as many buildings are advertising vacancies.

Next step: which areas of Oxnard are you considering? Have you researched the city? Plenty of info here on C-D, but feel free to ask anyway.

I would like to keep my budget for the rent some where around $800. I would prefer a house, as opposed to a apartment. I will have one extra roommmate who will also wants to pay around $800 a month. So I figure if we shoot for $1500, we will have money left over for utilities.

I really like the Silver Strand area, Channel Islands, Port Huenme is not out of the question.

Thanks for any help,

[24hr7]

a 2br house is doable for $1500. The sacrafice is going to be the location. Silver Strand and Channel Islands may be the sacrafice. Port Hueneme is doable

[DowntownVentura]

You need to allocate a lot more than $100/month for utilities.

$800 is about the most you could expect a roommate to pay in Oxnard. $600-$700 is more likely

This really is going to be a tough fit.

What might work better is renting a 4 bedroom for about $2200 and getting 3 roommates. Since you are the new guy in town, maybe you should look for a room to rent that will take dogs.

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by DowntownVentura

maybe you should look for a room to rent that will take dogs.

Second this. You can find a room with all utils. included with maybe Internet thrown in for around $600 - $700/mo. There are around 100 room-for-rent postings on the Ventura Craigslist daily. I'd say those are pretty good odds that you can find one who will rent to you and your dog.

[GeekUSA]

I'm sorry I guess I'm not being clear enough.

I'll be arriving with myself and ONE FRIEND who will be traveling with me. My friend is the one with the dog.

When you say $100 isn't enough for Utilities, I'm confused. I have a thread on city-data where two people reported they pay around $100 a month in utilities that live in Oxnard. How much should I adjust this figure?

Good suggestion on the room for rent, as that right now will be my goto if we arrive and my friend can't find any dog friendly landlords. He says he's not concerned by I know a lot of people are terrified of Staffordshires because of the reputation pit bulls have.

I should note I have found the ideal home on craigslist. It fits everything I'm looking for, but I can't get the landlord to respond. Grrr.

Thanks for the help,

[GeekUSA]

Originally Posted by DowntownVentura

You need to allocate a lot more than $100/month for utilities.

$800 is about the most you could expect a roommate to pay in Oxnard. $600-$700 is more likely

This really is going to be a tough fit.

What might work better is renting a 4 bedroom for about $2200 and getting 3 roommates. Since you are the new guy in town, maybe you should look for a room to rent that will take dogs.

This would be more than ideal but so far I can't find any more friends that are local that are wanting to make the move, but it is something I'm considering.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

You may want to consider that most apartment complexes in Oxnard will not have a garage. Also most of the reputable places are going to want to see that each person on the lease makes 3 X the monthly rent. If you find a place that rents for $800 a month (And I don't know of any that are that low.) you would need to have an income of $2,400 a month as would your friend. I do know that Los Arbolitos has some 1 bedroom right now renting for under $1,000 a month. They only have a car port though and only 1 carport to an apartment. They also only allow small dogs as most places that take dogs will only allow small dogs. Also if you bring a pet remember that the pet will also incur a deposit. At most places I have seen a cat deposit or small dog deposit starts at $350 a pet. Fish tanks also have a deposit at most places as well and some places require you to get additional renters insurance for the pets and the fish tanks.

Of the places that I know that have garages all are way out of your price range.

Older places on the South Side of Oxnard may work but not sure on the dog though.