Online Shopper
After four years of sharing dorm rooms and cramped one-bedroom apartments, I wanted a place of my own. So a month before I was to vacate my summer residence, I set out to find my home sweet home.
Having recently landed a job as an “online shopper,” my first inclination was to search for an apartment on the Web. What a disappointment.
The majority of rental Web sites I visited were not helpful. Those that were charged a substantial fee for their services. But even they could not overcome one fundamental problem with apartment hunting: Landlords lie.
I wasn’t looking for much--a studio apartment, preferably one for less than $850. The neighborhood didn’t really matter, so long as it wasn’t too far from downtown L.A. And hardwood floors, though not a necessity, were definitely a plus.
But of the eight or so listings I checked out, only one lived up to its online description. (The “charming bungalow guest house” in Hancock Park, for example, wasn’t charming, wasn’t a bungalow and definitely wasn’t in Hancock Park.)
As I have discovered, finding an apartment is a frustrating, time-consuming process that not even the Internet can speed up.
Most online rental listings are searchable by apartment size, price range and location. Databases usually are updated daily and include some of the latest listings in the areas they serve. Many feature photographs, virtual tours and floor plans of the units for rent.
Some Web sites, such as Homestore.com (https://www.springstreet.com), cater to renters with specific needs, such as pet owners, senior citizens and students.
My apartment search began a month ago with Web sites that offer free searches.
Unfortunately, these were mostly thinly veiled advertisements for corporate complexes. Sites such as ForRent.com (https://www.forrent.com) and Apartmentguide.com (https://www.apartmentguide.com) included contact information and details on each building, including amenities, number of units and prices. But they left out key details, such as whether the complexes had any units available for rent.
Recycler classified ads, at https://www.recycler.com, were no better. Although the site listed individual apartments for rent, most ads did not provide the landlord’s contact information; they simply referred me to other Web sites. (Recycler.com is owned by Tribune Corp., publisher of the Los Angeles Times.)
The only free Web site that offered any help was Craigslist (https://www.craigslist.org).
Most of the listings are posted by individuals looking for renters or sublessees. Some listers simply seek to swap houses with someone for a few weeks while they vacation in another city.
Although Craigslist didn’t have any listings for studios in my price range, it did offer many larger units in the small, privately owned buildings I prefer.
Once I exhausted the free Web sites, I reluctantly turned to the ones that charge for access. To entice customers, most offer “free guest searches.” As I would find, these offered only a sample of listings on the site and did not include addresses or landlords’ contact information. If I wanted more details, I would have to pay for them.
Both Westside Rental Connection (https://www.westsiderentals.com) and South Bay Rentals (https://www.southbayrentals.com) charge $60 to access their databases for 60 days. EZRentList (https://www.ezrentlist.com) charges $60 for 90 days of access.
Many of these sites claim to offer rental listings found nowhere else. But many of them are not worth finding. The landlady of a Melrose duplex, for example, neglected to mention in her ad that I would be sharing the property with her dog and 14 cats. Meanwhile, the owner of a “four-bedroom” Craftsman house in Pasadena omitted the fact that a tenant already was living in a fifth bedroom.
False advertising can’t be blamed on the Web sites, since landlords submit their own descriptions. However, don’t expect to find the home of your dreams without touring some real dumps first.
Before signing up with a prepaid rental listing service, apartment hunters might want to check out industry regulations. Visit the Assn. of California Rental Housing Information Services at https://www.crhis.org for specifics.
The state’s Department of Consumer Affairs also offers some details on renters’ rights at https://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/landlordbook.
Though looking for an apartment online is just as aggravating as by any other means, it is possible to find that perfect home.
Of my five friends who found apartments in L.A. this summer, three located them through fee-based rental Web sites. The other two found them through traditional means.
Last weekend, I came across another listing on Westside Rental Connection for a “charming” studio in my price range not far from downtown. Skeptically, I drove out to the site and met the landlord.
He hadn’t lied.
It was charming. It was in my price range. It wasn’t far from downtown. And it even had hardwood floors.
I move in tomorrow.
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Times staff writer Christine Frey covers personal technology.
