MetaChat - Do I unleash the Rental Beast?

MetaChat is an informal place for MeFites to touch base and post, discuss and chatter about topics that may not belong on MetaFilter. Questions? Check the FAQ. Please note: This is important.

11 June 2009

Do I unleash the Rental Beast? →[More:]Hello everyone! Long time, no post! School has been keeping me quite busy! So, the Boy and I are moving to Boston for August 1st and are trying to find a decent 2 bdrm unit. We are considering using this Rental Beast company to help us search but we don't know anyone who's used it. Has anybunny used them? Have you heard anything about them? Are they just giant scammers or are they legit? They claim to give you a list of viewings they set up for you, based on your criteria, for $295. The appointments are with either the supers or the managers and so all the units are no-fee. If we find a unit on our own, we can fax a copy of our lease and they'll give us our $300 back. Sounds nice and easy but is it too nice and easy? Any thoughts?

I've posted a similar question on AskMe as well but I trust the bunnies more then the mefites. Thanks everyone!

post by: LunaticFringe at: 11:40 | 9 comments

I just found a heap of negative reviews of this company on Yelp and, apparently, it is a giant scam! So I will not be using them to help me find a place. Instead, I think I'll just keep craiglisting away. Any other advice about finding a unit in Boston - close to the Longwood Medical area - would be roses.

posted by LunaticFringe 11 June | 11:53

I am too new here myself to give you much advice, however if you don't know Boston well, you may want to invest (or borrow from a relative) a navigational GPS unit. Some of these neighborhoods make no sense whatsoever.

posted by Ardiril 11 June | 12:08

What Ardiril said. Boston is a great town but a bear to navigate.

posted by octothorpe 11 June | 12:15

Sounds sketchy to me. Most apartment locator companies offer their services completely free of charge (none of this "pay us, then we'll refund your payment" either. Most reputable services have no reason to charge the apartment hunters because they're getting finders' fees and kick-backs from the apartment owners/managers.

posted by amyms 11 June | 12:20

Oh sorry, I didn't see your follow-up until after I posted. Since you've already determined that the particular company in question is a scam, you can enlist the help of legitimate apartment locator services (look in the yellow pages). They can be a great help. You give them your criteria (i.e. location, price, number of bedrooms, etc.) and they give you a list of the available rentals that might meet your needs. And, as I said before, the reputable companies do not charge you for this service.

posted by amyms 11 June | 12:24

Find one of those Apartments for Rent magazines. I found both of my Texas apartments through them. I think they're online as well.

[edited to add]

Just did a quick google search and there are lots of rental search sites there. Dunno which one may actually be the magazine, but there are lots of online options besides craigslist.

posted by deborah 11 June | 12:24

Most reputable services have no reason to charge the apartment hunters because they're getting finders' fees and kick-backs from the apartment owners/managers.

This. Never pay for a service you can get for free.

posted by muddgirl 11 June | 12:49

Also, I've used Rent.com very successfully in the past, at least here in San Antonio. It's free and they'll give you a $100 gift card if you end up renting an apartment that you found on the site. (Disclaimer - they require an email address and will probably sell it for spam money).

posted by muddgirl 11 June | 12:52

Boston craigslist is pretty commonly used, I think my sister found all her apartments through there.

posted by kellydamnit 11 June | 16:12

← Relive the Obama Inauguration with LEGO || Cute? Or creepy? →

HOME || REGISTER || LOGIN