The hunt is almost over
Friday I went apartment hunting again. My realtor, who was the same one who landed me my apartment last year and not amongst the realtors I listed in my last entry, found a couple of cute house-like units in yet another "historic district". Unlike the last two, however, this one appears to be a fairly safe area. It's a couple blocks from the Antique District, about a 10-minute drive from downtown. There are two places for me to look at. One isn't too bad, if a little grungy. It would have been a serious contender if the asking price weren't slightly too high.
The other took a few minutes for us to find. My realtor's key let us into an apartment that looked to be still occupied. I felt like we had stepped into an episode of CSI: West Palm Beach. No dead bodies, though. After double-checking his sheet, he discovers we're in the wrong unit; the correct apartment is actually across the way. It's cute. It's bigger than my last place. Asking price is $695 to start, and since it's been empty for nearly 18 months, I have a feeling I'll get whatever fairly low bid I put in.
Eventually, we run into a neighbor, who tells us the occupied-looking apartment was abandoned by someone who either worked for the Palm Beach Post or the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office, just ditching it in the middle of the night. Also, he was in a wheelchair. Ho-kay. O_o
So there's two places I'm seriously considering. I have my own fairly strong feelings on what to do, but I do welcome outside input (is that an oxymoron? heh). Here's how the apartments measure up:
Apartment #1: Condo unit in a gated community. Very nice area. Publix is a few minutes down the street. There's a pool and fitness room. Washer/Dryer in the unit. Asking price is $750, hopefully I can get that down to $650, maybe $675.
Disadvantages: The application fee ($150) is ridiculous, and they want $200 for a pet deposit. (At least they're not charging pet rent.) Obviously have to watch the noise levels at night, which may hinder my spinning. (Not that I blast music late at night, but I do need a decent volume to get inspired.) Kitchen on top of living room, never something I like.
Apartment #2: The one I mentioned above. As mentioned above, close to downtown. With the asking price of $695, I would obviously be paying less in rent. Application fee is only $35, don't think there's a pet deposit. (Floors are hardwood, so no need to worry about my cat destroying the carpet.) Apartment is somewhat isolated. The street is filled with houses, not cookie-cutter condos. There is some real funky furniture in the courtyard, including a diner-style booth. It looks like a cool place to hang out and have a beer on a hot night.
Disadvantages: The washer/dryer is coin laundry, and there's only one of each, although as far as I know there's only one neighbor in the complex right now. No dishwasher, although that might help save on electricity. Obviously, no pool or fitness room. As somewhat of a consolation, the beach is a few minutes away.
With the second apartment, there's also a couple more questions (mainly involving trash and parking) I'm going to ask the realtor before making my decision on which one to bid on. I'm going to do it on Monday, so please leave a comment and let me know what you think.
Poll Apartment hunting!
ETA, March 23, 12:53pm: Cheapness won out over laundry and the pool; I put in a bid for $575 on the historic district apartment. Let's see what happens.
The other took a few minutes for us to find. My realtor's key let us into an apartment that looked to be still occupied. I felt like we had stepped into an episode of CSI: West Palm Beach. No dead bodies, though. After double-checking his sheet, he discovers we're in the wrong unit; the correct apartment is actually across the way. It's cute. It's bigger than my last place. Asking price is $695 to start, and since it's been empty for nearly 18 months, I have a feeling I'll get whatever fairly low bid I put in.
Eventually, we run into a neighbor, who tells us the occupied-looking apartment was abandoned by someone who either worked for the Palm Beach Post or the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office, just ditching it in the middle of the night. Also, he was in a wheelchair. Ho-kay. O_o
So there's two places I'm seriously considering. I have my own fairly strong feelings on what to do, but I do welcome outside input (is that an oxymoron? heh). Here's how the apartments measure up:
Apartment #1: Condo unit in a gated community. Very nice area. Publix is a few minutes down the street. There's a pool and fitness room. Washer/Dryer in the unit. Asking price is $750, hopefully I can get that down to $650, maybe $675.
Disadvantages: The application fee ($150) is ridiculous, and they want $200 for a pet deposit. (At least they're not charging pet rent.) Obviously have to watch the noise levels at night, which may hinder my spinning. (Not that I blast music late at night, but I do need a decent volume to get inspired.) Kitchen on top of living room, never something I like.
Apartment #2: The one I mentioned above. As mentioned above, close to downtown. With the asking price of $695, I would obviously be paying less in rent. Application fee is only $35, don't think there's a pet deposit. (Floors are hardwood, so no need to worry about my cat destroying the carpet.) Apartment is somewhat isolated. The street is filled with houses, not cookie-cutter condos. There is some real funky furniture in the courtyard, including a diner-style booth. It looks like a cool place to hang out and have a beer on a hot night.
Disadvantages: The washer/dryer is coin laundry, and there's only one of each, although as far as I know there's only one neighbor in the complex right now. No dishwasher, although that might help save on electricity. Obviously, no pool or fitness room. As somewhat of a consolation, the beach is a few minutes away.
With the second apartment, there's also a couple more questions (mainly involving trash and parking) I'm going to ask the realtor before making my decision on which one to bid on. I'm going to do it on Monday, so please leave a comment and let me know what you think.
Poll Apartment hunting!
ETA, March 23, 12:53pm: Cheapness won out over laundry and the pool; I put in a bid for $575 on the historic district apartment. Let's see what happens.