Use an agent to find Greater Boston rental?
Hi All,
We are moving to Arlington, Massachusetts (Greater Boston area) this July, and will be renting for the time being. We have a reference to a competent and nice-seeming real estate agent who would help us find a rental, which we imagine could be beneficial since we will be mostly navigating the process from out of state (I have a sibling in the area who can help, too). My questions are: Would folks recommend using an agent to find a rental? Is there actually a cost difference, given that a lot of Boston-area rentals already seem to have broker's fees? Anything else to take into consideration with self-service vs. agent? Finances are definitely a consideration here, *and* we also want to find a good place. We have found apartments on our own this far, but have never rented in the Boston area.
Thanks!!
Parent Replies
So we use to live in Somerville where we owned but previously rented in Cambridge. I also went to college in Boston but graduated in 2007. As far as using an agent, it's not necessarily a bad idea. A lot of time what ends up happening is an office in an area like Arlington will have a few exclusive listings that can only be seen through one of their agents. If you're looking on your own craigslist, hotpads.com, apartments.com are decent options. Most broker's fees are about one month's rent.
What are your criteria in a new place? How much do you want to spend, how many bedrooms/bathrooms do you need? Do you need a garage? Newer or older housing preferred? Are schools in consideration? A lot of the "no fee" apartments are just inflated on the monthly price to account for the fee. Arlington doesn't have a ton of new construction rentals so depending on what you're looking for it may be something to consider.
I moved from the bay area to the boston area in 2013 and moved back to the bay area in 2016. The use of 'brokers' for rentals was quite a shock for someone from the west coast, but I guess it is more of an east coast thing. My recommendation is DON'T use a broker. They cost money (usually one months rent) and don't do anything besides serve as artificial gatekeepers; some of them are pretty scummy (i.e. they would talk to my husband but not me). Just filter whatever online search tool you are using by 'no broker' or 'no broker fee' and stick with those listings, of which there should be plenty. It definitely helps to visit in person for a weekend to look at places.