Walk around the neighborhoods you like, look for 'for rent' signs.
That's what I do when I'm already living in the area. In this case, it's harder - I'm in Canada - but may take a trip down just for this purpose.
Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
11–20 of 23 posts
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#12Yeah, bay area apartment searching is a bitch. CL is by far the best tool though, you just have to learn how to do it right. The biggest tip is to post a 'room wanted' ad - most people will only post a room if they don't find a fit there. Make your post stand out - don't give the same boring life story that everyone does - it's not relevant for a house. Post your phone number and the times you're available. When you…
Thank you kindly, that's just the sort of tip I was hoping for.
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#13I wrote a blog post about moving to the city a couple months back, it might be helpful to some people: http://is.gd/9sPS
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#14I got a copy of the Apartments For Rent magazine from a friend (I believe you can get it from ForRent.com) and found a lot of places that weren't there on Craigslist or Rent.com. It's useful to just call up the apartments directly to find out if they have anything.
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#15I'm not living in the bay but HotPads.com seems like it would be useful anywhere.
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#16I used http://www.apartmentratings.com when I first moved here.
And based on the reviews of the apartment complexes I decided to go with something private. The best way to find that was Craigslist. I live in a cottage behind someone's house in the middle of Mountain View. The rent is reasonable, I get along great with my landlord, and it's a very comfortable situation.
It's a shame things aren't set up more like Australia. Most apartments there are all privately owned, generally between 8-40 per complex, and a far nicer overall experience.
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#17[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#18Facebook Marketplace
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#19Slightly OT, but can we expand this question to the Seattle area as well?
I just moved to Seattle using Craigslist. That's how I found Stanford (http://www.stanfordatuw.com/). Pretty cheap and in an awesome location in the U-district. Good luck.
Re: Ask HN: What besides Craigslist is a good way to find an apartment in the Bay Area?
#20Kind of old school but find a local real estate agent that lists rentals or manages properties. They can give you a list of apartments that fit you needs and you won't have to spend so much time dealing with flakes on CL. Worked for me.