apt rental/agency questions

countingdays said:
I asked them what sort of a difference there is between furnished and unfurnished and they said it doesn't make a difference in price...

Huh? That's silly. Unfurnished are 1/2 to 1/3 the price.
 
If they're telling you there is no diff in prices btwn furnished and unfurnished, they're full of shit. Just as a point of view (YMMV), I had the option of a guarnatia and could rent an unfurnished place. However, I decided on renting a furnished apt b/c by the time I factored in what it would cost to buy all the appliances, furnishings and the bills, etc, the savings wasn't that significant. And I personally didn't want to deal with the headache of setting up all the utilities and waiting, etc.

Re: rent increases, I didn't have any the first year, i did have an increase of 10% the second year. FYI, If you sign a 2 year contract, there is usually a 20% increase the 2nd year. It's very common so don't make the mistake of thinking the price you sign is locked in for 2 years.
 
mini - thanks for the advice, I probably haven't been assertive enough, I'll try to push harder to make them look for cheap places (they can't expect me to pay more in rent than I earn in wages... that part just kinda cracks me up).

Exactly... from the online listings furnished definitely does make a difference in price!

citygirl - thanks -I would like to avoid waiting for internet to get set up (that's a hassle even in the states -how long do you think it might take?) but I'll probably just forgo most applainces. I lived in New Orleans without an a/c so I guess I don't even need that... I would like to have heat (I bet my apt will be small enough to use a space heater though).

I've seen some listings with different 1st year and 2nd year rates... but do you mean they might raise it without that notification??
 
You should give your agent a budget. And let him know you don't want to see anything priced over that monthly budget. If they continue to show you properties out of your budget just find another agent.

You can have internet set up within a week usually. It also depends on how your building is wired. If it is wired for Cablevision ( the broadband television service provider which is also Fibertel the broadband internet service provider ) it should take no more than a week.

Most if not all of the newer buildings have some form of central heating, whether it's heated floors or ceilings. So that might not be an issue for you at all.

The amount and terms of the rent increase will be clearly outlined and defined in the rental contract. It is also something that you should be willing to try to negotiate with the owner. If they ask for 20%, offer 10% etc.





countingdays said:
mini - thanks for the advice, I probably haven't been assertive enough, I'll try to push harder to make them look for cheap places (they can't expect me to pay more in rent than I earn in wages... that part just kinda cracks me up).

Exactly... from the online listings furnished definitely does make a difference in price!

citygirl - thanks -I would like to avoid waiting for internet to get set up (that's a hassle even in the states -how long do you think it might take?) but I'll probably just forgo most applainces. I lived in New Orleans without an a/c so I guess I don't even need that... I would like to have heat (I bet my apt will be small enough to use a space heater though).

I've seen some listings with different 1st year and 2nd year rates... but do you mean they might raise it without that notification??
 
Thanks Alex, glad to hear any increases will be written into the contract. I'm not sure I can switch agencies, but I will definitely be keeping them to my budget and letting my manager know what is going on.

Sorry to repeat, but does anybody know what the below means?
Does "con reserva" mean that a place is already reserved? Or just that I'll need to pay some sort of reserve/deposit?

***update*** my argentine co-workers disagreed on the meaning and finally called the agency... the place is reserved :/
 
countingdays said:
I've seen some listings with different 1st year and 2nd year rates... but do you mean they might raise it without that notification??

No. It's written into the contract. You could try to negotiate a 15% raise instead of 20%. But with inflation like it is, it could be a tough sell.

ETA: Sorry, I see Alex answered. I've never heard "con reserva".

Can you send me a private message with who the agency you are working with is? I'm just curious if it's the same one we had.
 
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