If you’re on the hunt for a new apartment, it’s important to have a checklist prepared in order to narrow down your search. You’ll need to decide where you want to live, how much you can afford to spend on rent, what type of rental you’re looking for (house, apartment, condo, townhome), how many bedrooms and bathrooms you’ll need, and what types of amenities you’re interested in.
Online renter tools will become your new best friend during your apartment search. Between mapping tools, in-depth filters, and top-notch photos and 3D tours, you’ll be sure to find your ideal apartment online in no time!
How to Use Mapping Tools to Filter Your Location
Whether you prefer the spacious suburbs or the heart of a big city, the first thing to decide is where you want to live. You’ll want to consider city and neighborhood, as well as what the location offers — in terms of public transportation, interstate access, local attractions, safety aspects, and proximity to conveniences such as restaurants, supermarkets, and retailers. To make things even easier, you can find all the information you need on Apartments.com! Simply search your desired location and click the “Local Guide” tool on the map. Here you’ll find helpful information about the city or neighborhood, the average cost of rent and square footage, the walkability of the area, and more. Google Maps is a great tool for researching the area as well.
If you already know what city and neighborhood you want to live in, great! But if you’re interested in more than one neighborhood in or around the same area, mapping tools will come in handy. Simply search for the city closest to the area you’re interested in on Apartments.com, choose the Polygon tool, and draw your own boundaries around your preferred location. Rentals available within that polygon will now pop up in your search.
How to Factor in Your Rental Budget with the Price Tool
Now that you’ve decided on a location or created your own polygon, it’s time to set your budget for rent. It’s important to lay out a budget where you can not only afford to pay your monthly rent, but afford to pay your other monthly expenses as well.
What is the 30% threshold and the 50/30/20 budget?
Many renters follow the 30% threshold rule of thumb, meaning that you should spend no more than 30% of your income on rent. You can also consider the 50/30/20 budget, in which 50% of your income goes towards essentials: rent, utilities, insurance, transportation, and food. The 30% is put aside for entertainment and non-essentials such as movies, concerts, shopping, and dining out. The remaining 20% goes towards your savings, whether that be a separate account, your retirement, or both. Your future self will thank you!
Although these are helpful guidelines, they sometimes ignore the full financial picture. It’s important to create a budget that accounts for your personal financial situation because, after all, everyone’s budget and situation may differ.
When searching for an apartment, set a maximum rent — after you’ve searched for a location or drawn a polygon — to make things simple. You may do so by using the Price tool on Apartments.com, located to the right of the location search bar on desktop; on mobile, filters will be available underneath the search bar. That way, you won’t risk looking at apartments that are out of your budget. You can also use the “Sort” tool to sort the listings from low to high regarding the cost of rent.
How to Filter Your Search Based on Rental Type and Size
Have you thought about the different types of rentals that may be available in your area? Are you set on an apartment or a condo, or would a townhouse or single-family home work for you as well? Luckily, Apartments.com has a Type filter to the right of the search bar that allows you to select the rental types you’re interested in. Under this filter, you will be able to see how many apartments, houses, townhomes, and condos are available in the area.
If you think you’d get use out of a guest bedroom or a home office, then a two- or three-bedroom rental is something to consider. A quaint one-bedroom offers you the convenience of a separate kitchen, bathroom, living room, and bedroom, but if you’re interested in a minimalist style, maybe consider renting a studio apartment. Simply click the Beds tool to the right of the search bar and choose a minimum and maximum number of bedrooms. If you’d like to filter by bathrooms and square feet as well, you can easily do so under the More tab!
How to Filter Your Apartment Search Based on Amenities
Perhaps you’re set on a rental with laundry facilities, a swimming pool, a fully-equipped fitness center, or even a dog park. If you’d like to filter your online apartment search even further, you can filter by types of amenities. Under the More tab to the right of the search bar on Apartments.com, you’ll find various amenities to check off, from utilities included to dog or cat friendly. If you do not see the amenity you are interested in, you can search for it under the Keywords section. Any apartments that fit the criteria will appear in your search.
Search filters and renter tools are great for narrowing down your online apartment search to your specifications, whether it’s based on location, cost of rent, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, square footage, type of rental, or amenities. You can use as many or as few tools and filters as you’d like — it’s up to you! Best of luck on your online apartment search, my fellow renters.
