3. CONSIDER USING A BROKER
Once you have a basic idea of the neighborhood(s) you want to live in, you should decide whether or not you want to use a real estate broker. A broker is a person who does most or all of the apartment hunting for you. Of course, this service is not cheap. Brokers charge fees for finding you an apartment, and those fees vary. In Chicago, the fee depends largely on what area of town you are interested in. The important thing is to not be put off by these fees; brokers like to give the impression that the fees are set in stone, but a little negotiating often goes a long way and will save you money you can later spend on popcorn at any of the 200 parades Chicago has each year (don't you love how seamlessly we weave these factoids in?).
Using a broker has several advantages. Brokers will do your leg work; they find apartments and make appointments to fit your schedule. If you are a workaholic who forgets what city you're in at any given time because you never see the light of day, a broker would probably be invaluable. Brokers also tend to have a wide selection of apartments from which to choose, and they occasionally have access to apartments not available to the general public (because some buildings are dubbed "broker buildings," in which the landlord will deal ONLY with brokers).
If you do decide to use a broker, there are several ways to find one. Many brokers advertise in the newspapers or in online classified ads; you can also find brokers in the Yellow Pages. If you decide to use a broker service, check out Habitat Realty. Habitat Realty has complete listings of available apartments in the larger high-rise buildings in Chicago, and their website is easy to use and contains photos of the areas. Another promising lead is to check out http://www.homes-condos.com/, provided by Chicago Apartments and Condos. Their listings are updated daily, so you can always get current information on rentals from them. Finally, many companies have associated brokers they use for relocating employees. If you work at a big company, ask your human resources person if there is a broker your company uses. In fact, your company might pay for the broker's fee.
