How to Rent a Room on Craigslist

The steps below break down how to go about finding a room to rent in the craigslist shared housing section.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Internet connection
• Deposit money
• Friendly attitude

1. Put together a list of references with phone numbers. Include your work manager, any former roommates that you got along with, and a past landlord if applicable. Warn everyone on the list that they may be called. Not everyone asks for references for a room for rent, but it's good to be ready.

2. Shop for a room that looks good, on craigslist.org. Read the whole ad. Pay attention to the restrictions. These are generally not negotiable. It's nearly impossible to hide things like pets and smoking in shared housing.

3. If the contact information for the room for rent is an e-mail, make an effort to make a good impression with your e-mail. If the rental market is tight, you could be passed over based on the e-mail. Don't just say, "I'm interested in the room, when can I see it?". Include your name, phone number, when you're available to see the room. Mention something about your job if you have one, or what or where you study if you're a student. Include anything that would make you an exceptional roommate, like that you're out of town half the time. Keep it brief, and check your spelling and grammar.

4. If the first contact for the room for rent is via phone, treat the call like a job interview or first date. Call from somewhere without background noise. Think ahead of time about what you'll say if you need to leave a message. Keep phone messages brief. Name number, and when available is enough.

5. If someone calls you back on an e-mail, there is a good chance they are pre-screening you. Answer questions honestly, but try to present yourself well.

6. Go see the room. If you've been asked to come see the room, that means you made it through the first screening. From the renter's perspective, this is an interview for the position of new roommate. In a big city, you're probably going to be up against at least 3 other people who want the room. You need to appear easy to live with to your potential future roommates. Be friendly and positive. Be prepared to talk about your self. Pay attention to your personal hygiene. Dress like someone you'd like to live with. If you're not too social, it's OK. Some people prefer roommates who hide in their rooms.

7. Ask questions. Ask about what the roommates do, what their schedules are, how often sleepover guests stay, how food works, how utilities are split. Find out who's on the lease, or who owns the house. Ask about what kind of parties are thrown. Get full names of the potential roommates so you can at least look them up on google. Ask if they have social networking pages.

8. If you like the place, say nice things about it, or the people living there. When there are two good candidates, the one who seemed to want it more, often gets it.

9. Before you leave ask when the room will be offered. If the room rental market is soft, they may offer it on the spot, but generally they'll wait until they've met everyone, thought it over, and checked references.

10. If you haven't been offered a room you want yet, go back to step 1. Don't take it hard if you don't get the first room for rent. You just need to keep looking. In fact you should make contact for every possible match in the area your interested in for the best odds.

11. Do the paperwork, and pay up. The process for renting a room varies by the household you're renting from. Some people will want to do a formal rental agreement and credit check. Some will just want you to hand over the money and move in. Once you hand over the deposit, it's generally understood that if you back out before move in, you don't get the deposit back.
    A rental agreement is beneficial to you as well as the landlord. It helps clarify exactly what the arrangement is, and prevents conflict later. There are standard lease forms available online you can use. At minimum, ask for a receipt for the deposit. In shared housing, there's often confusion over how much deposit you originally paid when it comes time to move out. This is especially true if the rent has changed, or the co-tenants have changed over.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have the option, try to avoid more than 3 roommates sharing one bathroom, especially if overnight guests are allowed, or everyone works the same schedule.
• People tend to prefer roommates near their age.
• People offering rooms will be reluctant to rent to you without meeting you in person. There are too many Nigerian scammers answering these ads.
• Don't shop for a room on behalf of someone else. Renters want to deal with the person they will be living with directly.
• When renting a room from a stranger, you're taking a risk that that stranger will be safe to live with in exchange for lower rent. The odds are in your favor, but if you're not willing to take that gamble, you shouldn't do this.
• It's not a bad idea to tell a friend where you're going when you go to see a room for rent, and check in with them again when you leave. Bringing a friend with you is not standard practice, but can be OK. Just remember that your friend factors into the first impression you're making.
• Listen to your gut. If you're uncomfortable with a potential roommate situation, keep looking.
• Always keep move out money. One advantage of rooms is that they are generally rented month to month. If you get one that's not working for you, you can get out easily if you have the cash.
• This advice is based on experience in the San Francisco area. Experiences will vary.

[jenng]

on 6/13/2009 Great article on how to rent a room on craigs list 5*

[jkopinion]

on 6/5/2009 Excellent 5* tips on using Craigslist to rent a room.Thanks.