I wanted to officially note that the September 1, 2008 rental season is already in full-swing; and it seems we are going towards an extremely busy and competitive rental market this Spring and Summer. Not only have we (GrandCentralApartments.com) already been getting availability updates from a good portion of our management companies, we have seen a substantial amount of clients finalize their leases for September, 2008.
So for all you April-September renters, I would suggest you start your search early. As soon as the weather gets warmer and more people are out looking, prices will rise and inventory will go down.
The early birds get the worm.
On another note, Boston Real Estate Now, The Boston Globe Blog covered a new rent calculator-thingy called Zilpy.com. I’m not entirely sure how they get their information, but you can get some detailed info about Boston, MA (or any location you desire), such as:
- Renter occupied: 64 %
- Population: 589,141
- Vacancy rate: 4.9 %
- Median household income: $39,629
- Monthly rent affordability: $990
- Crime rate index: Violent: 5; Property: 4 (1-lowest, 5-highest)
- Ethnicity: White (54 %); Black (25 %); Hispanic (14 %)
- Age groups: 25 to 34 (21 %); Under 18 (20 %); 18 to 24 (16 %)
- Education: High School (38 %); College (13 %); Graduate School (10 %)
Source: zilpy.com
Good luck,
IG
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One Comment
Hi, I will be moving to Boston with the family in November (postdoc at MIT). We will be looking for a two bedroom in Brookline/Cambridge/Watertown. Are those good options? What is the market like in November, will it be very difficult to find a place??
Thanks for your help!
EA