Finding A Rental Apartment Abroad
Searching for a rental apartment in a country that you know little or nothing about can be a challenging undertaking. Knowing little about the owners and the exact place where the rental home is located certainly poses some problems.
Though most of the vacation home sites provide detailed descriptions and exterior and interior photos, words and pictures may only be rough approximations of reality. It is too bad that many find this out only after they arrive and have made a financial commitment to rent the apartment.
Is there anything that you can really do to insure that the apartment that you are renting over the internet corresponds in truth to the website representation that the owners of the property have published at their site? Or that they are honest, ethical folks that are not just out to make a buck off some unfortunate foreigner who knows little about the country where the property is located? In the United States there area number of sites that one can consult to gather information about the specific area where a rental property is located. Many websites provide demographics on neighborhoods and blogs from people who have actually rented the apartments. One such site is http://www.apartmentratings.com .
Here not only will you find testimonials from former renters about the particular rental home, how it is managed, the amenities, and the overall condition of the rental units; you will even find information on the number of registered sex offenders in the immediate vincinity.
Of course, you cannot expect to uncover facts at sites that offer specific demographic information on, let’s say, neighborhoods in Casablanca, Morocco,Quito, Ecuador, or Taipei, Taiwan. You will need to rely on information from those you know who havevisited these areas, or you will have to rely on the information you are acquiring from the owners of the vacation homes, whose perceptions about many things, especially about safety, may be quite at odds with your own. Is there really anything you can do to assure yourself that the property you will be renting conforms to your expectations?
I have a few ideas that may be helpful when you are trying to find an apartment overseas. Searching Google for blogs about the particular area where you plan to rent may be a good starting point. Many peoplekeep blogs on their travels and placesthey have rented. A Google search in which you enter key words about the area should turn up a number of blogs that will offer reflections on the particular area you have in mind.
The blogs can provide you with general information about the area, though rarely anything about the rental apartment. Secondly, look for websites that post recommendations of guests. This can be very helpful in supplying you with particular details about the building, the immediate area, and the apartment itself. Thirdly,
It may be worth it to talk directly with the person who is renting the apartment. In this day and age, most international business is conducted in English, so it is very likely that you will find a rental owner who is fairly fluent in English. It’s great when you actually find someone who did notjust pick up English, but actually is an American or native speaker.
Lima Accommodations, for example, is owned and operated by an American expat who has worked and lived abroad for many years. Finding someone who speaks the same lingo can definitely give you a better idea of what you will be renting most likely a view of key issues like safety that correspond more or less to your own. Lastly, do not send more than a reasonable amount of money to reserve the apartment. Usually, owners ask for $100 to book an apartment and this $100 becomes part of the security deposit when you arrive. Never pay the full month’s rent in advance. Be very wary of anyone who would ask you to pay a month’s rent before you arrive.
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