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FIND YOUR DREAM HOME OR APARTMENT
17Comments
Feb 17, 2012 11:27PM
I live in the #5 area - San Jose, Santa Clara, etc. It's worse than they say. It was a 17% increase from last year in my apartment complex, and almost that much in all of the properties I checked out before I decided to just stay here another year. Yes, you can find cheaper rentals...you could also pitch a tent. It doesn't mean either is a sustainably liveable situation for most people.
Jul 15, 2011 8:45AM
A fair assessment of precisely how much more expensive it is to rent in one city versus another, or which city has the highest rent increases, and how often, depends upon which class of people one is making these distinctions. For example, there is the upper class, the upper middle class, the middle class, and the one that no one wants to speak of, the obvious one, the lower class (aka impoverished and downtrodden, those on public assistance, the homeless). Just a day ago some friends of mine were told by a city of Denver health inspector that they had to move out of the house they had only rented two months ago because it was uninhabitable. They were paying $750.00 monthly! The landlord is a slumlord, intentionally allowing for his property to fall into disarray, exploiting his tenants for his financial gain and doing absolutely nothing to keep his property representable. Many landlords truly by policy and practice want and fully expect to rent to anyone who falls within the "lower class" because they realize that they cannot afford to live where the "middle class" folks stay. They purposefully let their properties get ragged and dilapidated, damn near blighted, and suck them for as long and for as munch as they possibly can, until either the city authorities tell them otherwise, the property falls apart, or burns down. For the lower class population their wages don't rise, or their government benefits don't rise, but everything else does/is. The cost of groceries, clothing, utilities, public transportation, taxes, rent, etc., etc., keeps rising, annually, until even they are priced out of the rental markets, often times resulting in more and more evictions and adding to the homeless populations. And all of this is solely about GREED!!
May 24, 2011 3:20PM
May 24, 2011 1:19PM
Mar 21, 2011 6:40PM
Tacoma's rent has a large increase because it was so undervalued for the last 2 decades. With the light rail to downtown and all the new resturants Tacoma is becoming a good place to go instead of Seattle. Rents in Tacoma are still tremendously lower than Seattle and even some of Seattles closer suburbs.
Mar 21, 2011 5:22PM
Just sharing a thought.
Having lived and rented in cities in several parts of the country (as well as overseas), the rental market can really drive one "crazy". Rental prices sometimes make no sense at all when viewed in terms to the local economy and wages levels.
Here in the Northeast (1-2 hours from NYC), you can find some of the highest rents in the nation, but also some very good values. Old housing stock (some 3 families houses have huge rooms) where you can sometimes get a very good value (If you choose to buy you can use them as income producers charging very reasonable rents). In todays economy, there is still a markets for room rentals in some areas (college students, widowers, veterans). Some people just like to travel through life light
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Look for landlords who are creative and rent older units (at lower prices) and decorate them to suit your "apartment style tastes". Over the years, I've found that "inside" condition is much more important than outside. You can reshape some neighborhoods by paying attention to what is going on outside from the inside (hope you get it). And yes, find a "peaceful" roommate or two and share the expenses (electric/gas/water/oil) if you can. Thrift shops are great places to find nice stuff (I've found one in Bridgeport,CT that sells low cost new furniture). In most case, going it alone these days will always cost you extra money and headaches but you can make it if you use your head.
Renters, keep the faith!
Mar 21, 2011 3:29PM
Mar 21, 2011 2:32PM
Mar 21, 2011 2:23PM
Move to kansas city, Getting ready to buy a house, a decent house but not much for property 3 bed 2 bath 2 car gar. full basement built in 2004 100,000 thats about 600 or so a month including ins. and taxes and depending on credit ofcoarse. Most houses I have found are about in the 135,000 range unless you need to have all the fancys then you are going to pay out the A__.
Mar 21, 2011 2:14PM
A lot of these so called high this best there. Is off, Boston has to be one of the most expensive places to live. Besides New York and California. You cannot get a one bedroom for less thant $1200. My rent is over 2000 grand a month. This state is money sucker, we have tolls taxes on everything. The list goes on and on. Most cannot afford to live here and the ones that don't have a degree live in poverty or are on some kind of government assistance.
Mar 21, 2011 2:03PM
To Rob in Denver I'm a Philadelphia native that moved to Denver in 2008 because my wife was born and raised there. I was also a outsider in your city and Denver does have a lot of people from Texas and California living there but the reason for no jobs there are because of people there. In my time of living in Denver the state of Colorado has a law making all employees at will which means they can be terminated without cause one of the main reasons why I moved back east. And the people there don't stand up to management and the unions are joke. That will continue as long as the people of Denver continue accept this.
Mar 21, 2011 2:01PM
I just relocated to Denver & agree the info is very much dated. Journalists should check their facts before they print articles. Denver is unnecessarily expensive, & the salaries don't match the rising cost of living. The housing prices are too high for the current market. Because the unemployed began looking again that is what took the unemployment rate from 8.3% to 9.9%. As for the rental market, the rents are too high because there is a shortage of apartments vs. renters. I don't know where Marti works but it must be a dump, bad area or too pricey if they can't find renters. Everything I've seen is at 90% occupancy. Maybe they should revisit those issues. None of the complexes I've called or visited are having trouble renting no matter how bad they are. What I've found is old & a throw back to the 80's, very ugly & pricey. I'm stunned that I've had so much trouble finding a place. Rob in Denver really doesn't like Texans huh? They're not the only people moving here. Everyone is looking for a break away from places with bad economies or weather. Lighten up Rob in Denver. Nothing stays the same unless you live in the boonies. Change happens whether you like it or not. Get used to it or move to the boonies where no one lives but you.
Mar 21, 2011 1:12PM
Denver's unemployment is rose to 9.9% and is at all time high. This is very unfortunate for a native of Denver for over 40 years with a BA degree and no career prospects. The information given here is outdated. Denver is on the brink of going back to its cow town roots the way things are going right now. The income gap is rising. One person might be driving a car that's ready for the dump while another is driving a polished Benz. While the job market continues to go south, we have Texans from the south of us flooding our state. It makes me want to puke everytime I see hook-em horn emblems and clothing gear all over Denver. We never had a flood of out-of-staters coming in like swarms of bugs in a short period of time. The Texans keep coming and it makes no sense.
Mar 21, 2011 12:46PM
Mar 21, 2011 12:33PM
Mar 21, 2011 12:10PM
Apparently the great city of Williston ND got overlooked. I sure as hell would rather be paying $900-$1200 a month rent in the Sounthern US than paying the $2400-$3000 a month rent most landolords are getting here...and we aren't talking new construction, they're getting that for 1970s vintage trailer houses. Of course you'll be paying those prices only if you're lucky enough to find an available house. I've met many people who're weathering the 20+ degrees below zero winter days/nights here in RVs and crappy campers...while paying $450 or more a month for a lot that has no water or electricity. There's no city in the US that's got the rental shortage or hike in rental prices that this city does!
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