Rental Home Process
I’ve helped many clients find rental homes in Austin and many of them have been through my Facebook groups! I’ve driven to Kyle, Cedar Park, Hutto, Del Valle, etc. You name a city, I’ve most likely driven there with my security guard (my husband Matt).
Many of my clients post on Facebook groups and that’s how I reach out to them about my services. Their posts include the words difficult and budget-friendly. Finding a rental home in Austin may seem daunting, but it’s not that hard when you use a realtor.
I know what you're thinking, “Brenda, you just want a commission”. Of course, I’d love to get paid for helping you! BUT in all reality, why wouldn't you use a realtor? They send you homes that may not pop up in Zillow or Redfin, they schedule tours for you, and they try to negotiate the rent for you. And sometimes, just sometimes, they may have an engineer of a husband come over to your rental to fix your washer and dryer, fix light bulbs, and switch out the batteries in your smoke alarm! (Please schedule in advance hehe).
When to Start Searching
Okay, so back to the process. The first step is determining when you should start looking. Rental homes are not like apartments. Most of these rental homes are owned by private owners and they want to collect rent ASAP so that means they want tenants to move within two-three weeks. An application takes about 3-5 days to process to make sure the credit report, background check, and rental verification comes back meeting the home’s desired requirements. For example, if your move-out date for your apartment is on January 1st, I would start touring rentals at the beginning of December. You’ll have enough time to tour the homes, rank your favorites, and negotiate on the ones you definitely will be applying to.
Information on Credit
Some other questions that I’m asked are about credit. Every home will require different credit requirements, but I mostly see homes looking for tenants with around a 650+ credit score. Side note: If you have a lower credit score, you can always see if they’ll accept a double deposit.
Now, let’s say you meet those credit requirements, but have an outstanding amount of debt, missed car payments, etc. That might mean an automatic denial and you may have to communicate with your realtor to try to see if a double deposit will suffice or if you can pay off some of the outstanding balance. It all just depends. Every situation is unique. Some owners are understanding and others are not.
A Note About Repairs
Last thing I’ll touch on is repairs. I remember once, I had a client who came on a tour with a notebook and would list about twelve things he wanted to be fixed, added, or repaired. I sent it over to the owner and out of that whole list, he agreed on one item. Do not get your hopes up when it comes to repairs. I know it sounds horrible on their end, but unless the owner is desperate to rent out the home as soon as possible, they will not change the carpet, add fresh paint, or do repairs unless there are health hazards such as mold. Many will allow you to paint the walls, do the repairs yourself, etc. Remember, everything is negotiable!
Questions? Contact me!
If you have any questions at all, please fill out my contact form and I’ll get to you as soon as possible! Happy renting!
