Apartment hunting in Miami, FL, can be pretty arduous, and it can take a while to find that perfect place.Myself, I have a love-hate relationship when it comes to apartment-hunting in general. It’s super thrilling as it means a fresh new place and somewhere you can make a home. On the other hand, it might be a little overwhelming to find your dream apartment.So, in this article, we’ve got you covered with some hunting tips to help you find your dream apartment.
Let’s get started!
1- Consider Where You Want To Live
Miami is one of the nation’s ten most expensive rental markets, and the city’s neighborhoods are always in high demand. If you’re looking for a high-end spot where you can enjoy the city’s renowned cultural attractions and legendary nightlife, focus your search on the following hotspots.
Downtown Miami
South Beach
Brickell
Coconut Grove
Miami’s rental market can be costly, but the city is still home to several economic neighborhoods. Below you’ll find some of Miami’s best quiet suburbs and up-and-coming areas, where you will find many rentals priced on the lower end of the market:
Little Haiti
North Beach
Miami Shores
Little Havana
Once you narrowed down where you’re looking to settle, next comes the apartment hunting processes.
2- Start The Hunt!
We came now to the exciting part…actually starting the apartment hunt! Long gone were the days when apartment hunters had to precisely scan the newspaper classifieds to find a place to live. Nowadays, any renter can easily access hundreds of apartment listings through rental search websites and apps.Frankly, the options can be overwhelming. I’d say about 80% of places are listed on Zumper, so that should be your first point of call. Zumper is known for its easy-to-digest rental retail details and deep knowledge of local rental markets. On Zumper, you can apply online and submit digital rental applications and credit reports with Zumper’s screening service, powered by TransUnion™. Zumper’s inventory is updated in real-time, so you’ll always see new rentals on Zumper first with real-time alerts.You will have the option to filter by location, price range, bedroom count, pet-friendly, or amenity and set an alert to get notifications when a new listing is posted.Since neighborhood differences are difficult to discern, especially if you are non-locals, Zumper shows its local expertise in the search results, too. Map view on Zumper allows you to select individual neighborhoods and clearly shows listing locations. That’s why I would suggest the key website to look at to be Zumper as your choice for your Miami apartment hunting journey.
3- Furnished Or Unfurnished?
That is another thing to think about when you’re looking for a place which is furnished or not furnished home. Unfurnished places tend to be a bit affordable, but then you have to furnish your place. It’s not too hard to do it on a budget; you’ll find everything from beds, sofas to TVs to desks on lots of websites like Craiglist, etc.
4- What About Additional Costs?
Surprisingly, utilities in Miami are a touch lower than the national average. According to Smart Asset, the average utility bill for a 915 square foot apartment will run you about $115, a little less than $40 cheaper than the national average. That bill includes basic electricity, garbage service, water, and heating.
5- Know Your Rights
If you’re new to Miami, this will be foreign ground, but it’s so crucial that you know and understand your rights and what’s required of both you and your landlord. Please take a look at the Landlord/Tenant Law in Florida for information on your responsibilities and rights as a tenant and everything else.
6- Be Patient And Persistant
It can be pretty discouraging but trust me, the right place is out there!Please keep looking twice a day, every day. Many apartments get added all the time, so you’ve got to be on the ball. Some people look at their apartment just 1–2 hours after the listing went live, and fortunately, the landlord liked them, and they got it on the same day. If you’re just arriving in the city, plan and clear your schedule for few days or so and be ready to look at apartments at short notice.
7- Explore The Area
It really matters to take a quick walk around the block before or after looking at an apartment. See what the neighbourhood’s like, navigate where your nearest grocery store is, and more that might interest you later.
8- Keep An Open Mind
Landlords’ images can be deceiving, so you need to keep an open mind and don’t judge it before you get there. A bit might look a hundred times worse, and equally, It might look a hundred times better than the photos.
9- View In The Daytime
I always suggest daytime viewing in dimly lighting; it’s super easy to miss things like grubby walls, mould around the windows, etc. It’s also great to know what kind of natural light your apartment will get and just get a good feel for the place.
10- Be Ready
We cannot see the future, so you never know — you might see an apartment, like it and move in the next day, which means you need to be well prepared and ready to act.
Final Thought
Please always remember to stay optimistic! Remember, apartment hunting in Miami can take time, so have a belief that something will come up! Your dream apartment will likely appear when you least expect it, so don’t lose hope and trust that you’ll find somewhere that suits your needs and soul!
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