Best Rental Search Practices for Residents in DC, 2023

What are the best websites to use in your rental search?

There are a ton of rental search websites out there, and you could use them all, but you wouldn’t actually be casting a wider net. These days, Zillow is the #1 rental search site and you’ll rarely find an apartment that isn’t listed there. Because Zillow is so widely used, rental agencies miss out on leads if they don’t utilize it. 

The caveat: Zillow is expensive for housing providers to list on; it’s no longer a free service. So, you may find smaller companies or individual landlords that don’t use Zillow, and instead focus on free sites like Zumper, HotPads, or even Craigslist (we know, that feels outdated, but Craigslist is actually still a thing in DC, especially for roommates).

Pro Tip: Do you have your heart set on a particular neighborhood or even a specific building? Take a walk! You may see signs about apartments for rent that haven’t yet made it online, and they may have cell numbers if it’s a private owner. For apartment buildings (NOT condos) the apartment manager can probably tell you if there’s an upcoming vacancy that hasn’t been listed yet, so you might be able to beat the crowd! 

Should you hire a realtor?

This isn’t NYC. You don’t need a broker to guide you through the battlefield of highly competitive apartment listings (thank goodness!). In fact, we’d actually posit that you’re more likely to find your dream rental on your own because no one is a better advocate during your housing search than YOU. While realtors may have access to listings before they go public, they also have competing priorities, AKA buying + selling, that may distract them from being the best partner in your rental search. 

But, if you’re new to DC and have no idea where to start, or you’re starting a new job and simply don’t have the time, paying for a realtor’s relocation services may be the best option. They can act as a guide, provide expert suggestions, and book showings for you. If your realtor understands your needs, you may even trust them to see spaces on your behalf. That’s a time-saver! You can expect to pay one month’s rent for this service (which means 1 month’s rent + security deposit + realtor fee = 3 month’s of rent that you owe up front). 

However, if you love browsing listings, can dedicate an hour or so a day to searching, and don’t mind scheduling showings and viewing properties until you find the ONE, we recommend handling the search yourself. You have access to nearly every listing that a realtor would (this isn’t true for sales, FYI, but it does apply here), and apps like Zillow make it easy to save search parameters and your favorite listings, so you can jump in where you left off.

Pro Tip: Now, here’s where you may need some outside help, whether that’s a realtor, a friend who's familiar with DC, or simply the r/washingtondc Reddit page.

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