Now that we are well into the summer months, we are seeing lots of media coverage noting the dwindling of concessions and the return of broker fees. This is indicative of healthier rental market and the effect of seasonality, marked by 75% of leases turning over between April and September. Here are some tips for surviving the summer rental season:
- Adjusted expectations: a majority of the market is now comprised of fee apartments, meaning that landlords are not picking up the broker tab. Limiting your search to “no fee” only is truly, well, limiting. Prices have solidified, and then some. Those lower rents that your friends may have gotten in February or this time last year are long gone, so don’t anchor to them.
- Shrunken inventory: rental inventory is tighter than usual during summer months; you may need to choose from among 2-3 good apartments versus 3-5 unbelievable ones.
- Speed matters: you need to move quickly. If you do find an apartment you love, chances are others adore it too; have all of your paperwork ready to go with each and every apartment you see. Landlords are getting pickier in terms of choosing the candidate with the highest credit standards or best financial picture from among multiple applications. Make sure you are ready with documentation and the application fee quickly to put yourself at the top of the list, and have those rent and security deposit certified checks easily accessible.
… and, to give you a sense of current market pricing, here is a recent rental market report to feed that curiosity.
