For college students, tips on finding a rental without being scammed
According to the city, more than 97,000 students lived off-campus in 2017-18, two-thirds of them in private housing.
For college students, finding a place to rent in Boston is harder than nabbing a spot in a popular class.
Affordability. Safety. Competition with students from 35 colleges and universities. … It’s tough to find a rental that checks every box on your wish-list.
Michael DiMella, chairman of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board, said a 12-month lease, although not ideal for those who live in Boston only during the school year, is standard.
“There’s just not a lot of availability out there for short-term or seasonal or month-to-month leases in the type of market that we’re in,” DiMella said.
According to a City of Boston student-housing trends report, more than 97,000 undergraduate and graduate students lived off-campus in 2017-18, two-thirds of them in private housing.
“That is probably not the largest market segment,” however, DiMella said. “The majority of rentals is someone who’s going to be in an apartment for a year or two years or three years.”
Jason Gell, vice president of Greater Boston Association of Realtors and former chairman of its Rental Issues Task Force, said job creation and increased enrollment in Boston’s colleges and universities have ramped up the pressure on the housing market.
There are so many people moving into the city, and the housing supply has been fairly stagnant, Gell said.
Navigating the rental market as a college student or intern can be a nightmare.
“There’s unfortunately not a one-stop shop for that type of place,” DiMella said.
But there are resources that can help. Here are six tips from the experts on how to find a rental in the Boston area:
1. Work with a licensed agent
Gell said the best and most foolproof way to find a rental is with the help of “a realtor, someone who abides by a code of ethics, who has the public interest as part of their code of ethics.” There is a fee when working with an agent, he said, but Massachusetts law requires the agent to disclose the amount and when it’s due from the beginning. A typical fee is the equivalent of one month’s rent, the Globe has reported.
It is not uncommon for agents to work on a contingency basis or for owners to pay some or all of the fee, Gell said. Regardless, renters “need to use an agent if they want to protect themselves,” he said.
2. Or work with a property management company
If you’d rather not pay an agent, “Your best option in that case is to at least work with a verified management company, someone that has references and legitimacy that you can verify,” Gell said. “A good tip is the managing agent for any building in Boston must be posted in the lobby or the front of the building.”
3. Get familiar with the basics
If you prefer to go it alone, it is important to know what common rental terms mean and what the protocol is when communicating with landlords. The Office of Housing Stability’s tenant guide outlines what you need to know in simple terms.
4. Review the city’s guide to renting in Boston
Using the city’s “Renting in Boston” guide, renters can research properties, review their legal rights and insurance information, and more.
5. Visit the property in person before committing to the rental
“If they can’t physically get in and visit the property, that’s a big red flag,” Gell said. But even seeing the property in person does not guarantee that it’s a safe deal. “I’ve heard horror stories of outgoing tenants pretending to be agents and showing the apartment that they lived in, collecting applications and deposits from six different groups, and then disappearing,” Gell said. “You’ve got to be careful.”
6. Check public records
After visiting the property, check public records and verify whether that person is the owner or has the right to rent out the apartment, Gell said. The owners’ names can be found on masslandrecords.com or at your community’s assessors office.
“The question that I think it really boils down to is, ‘Is it worth potentially saving a fee to end up homeless and out even more money because you were trying to avoid using an agent?’ ” Gell said.
Subscribe to the Globe’s free real estate newsletter — our weekly digest on buying, selling, and design — at pages.email.bostonglobe.com/AddressSignUp. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @globehomes.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com