| "You've decided that you're ready to rent a | | | | your rental home. Your realtor will be able |
| home. Perhaps you've been living in | | | | to answer questions about the safety of a |
| apartments for a long time and ready to move | | | | neighborhood as well as let you know about |
| into a bigger space with a yard but aren't | | | | its proximity to schools, public |
| quite ready to commit to buying a home. | | | | transportation and area nightlife. These |
| Making a move like this generally suggests | | | | things can take awhile to research on your |
| that you're looking for a home that you're | | | | own so you may save time (and heartache) by |
| going to be in for at least a short period of | | | | using a realtor. |
| time and so you want to find a home that | | | | |
| meets all of your needs. You can probably do | | | | • Negotiating rental terms is difficult |
| this on your own, but would it be better to | | | | for you. Most landlords expect that you will |
| get the help of a realtor? Possibly. | | | | attempt to negotiate certain terms of your |
| | | | rental agreement. You'll try to get a lower |
| Here are some things that might make you want | | | | rate or at least a lower deposit, you'll want |
| to use a realtor to find your rental home: | | | | some leniency on the "no pets" clause or |
| | | | you'll want to clarify points about |
| • You're new to renting. If you're | | | | maintenance of the home. If you aren't good |
| moving in to your first rental home and have | | | | at negotiating these things, you might just |
| previously lived in a parents' house or a | | | | accept the rental agreement as is which is |
| dorm, you may not know what you need to look | | | | usually not a good idea. A realtor can do |
| for in a rental home. A realtor can not only | | | | these negotiations for you which will get you |
| make sure that you get all of your rental | | | | the best lease without harming your |
| needs met and get the best deal for your | | | | relationship with the new landlord. |
| situation but will also take you through all | | | | |
| of the steps in the process so that you'll | | | | • You don't have the time to find your |
| have that knowledge when renting future | | | | rental home. Perhaps you're a busy |
| homes. | | | | professional with too much on your plate and |
| | | | you can't be looking through rental ads all |
| • You are moving to a new city. If | | | | day long. Hiring a realtor who will listen to |
| you're moving to a location that you aren't | | | | your needs and find you the right homes to |
| familiar with, it's usually a wise idea to | | | | look at can save significantly on the time |
| get the assistance of a realtor for finding | | | | involved in the process. |