3. FIND AN APARTMENT YOURSELF USING THESE TECHNIQUES
Hit up your employer or school
You may want to begin your search by asking your employer if the company has any real estate services; some large companies hold apartments for employees or have very good contacts in the rental market. Similarly, if you have any school affiliations – alumni or current – contact your school and inquire as to whether the school has any apartment bulletin boards or online listings. These housing openings are often more affordable and safer than something you could find on your own, and many are open to people affiliated with the university.
Online
There are a bunch of apartment sites out there, but we like Move.com apartments & rentals the best. HomeStore provides regularly updated listings of apartments available for rent in various neighborhoods based on options you select. They also offer moving tips, roommate advice, legal tips and other information useful to renters.
Newspapers and magazines
Newspapers and magazines are good sources for apartment listings, both in print and online. Here are some examples:
APARTMENT GUIDE – A weekly publication of apartment listings available for free at just about any large grocery store. These tend to be heavy on the large complexes, as they charge money to advertisers and people with only one or two apartments to rent won't want to pay.
LOS ANGELES TIMES – The classified ads section includes listings for apartments in various areas. The L.A. Times online just transfers you to another online apartment listing when you try to see classified ads for apartments, so you have to buy the dead trees to get their advertisements.
THE DAILY BRUIN – A UCLA paper available for free at various places on UCLA's campus. They have a lot of westside apartment listings, and they can get some real gems sometimes. Definitely worth a look if you are interested in living anywhere near UCLA.
Bulletin boards, postings
Aside from letting you know what the area is like, driving around the areas in which you would like to live can be helpful in uncovering leads. People often post flyers offering nearby apartment sublets and rentals at churches, gyms, recreation centers, bus stop shelters, schools, and telephone booths in the neighborhood. Go. Look.
Driving around
A lot of landlords are too lazy, cheap, and illiterate to place ads anywhere at all, so all they do is dust off the old "For Rent" sign, write a barely-legible phone number on it in lime green crayon, and set it up somewhere near their building. In order to see these advertisements, you have to drive by them. It's really handy to have a cell phone when you're on these excursions, but, if you're not into brain cancer or you can't afford one, you can use pay phones. There are a lot of "For Rent" signs in and around West Hollywood, which can be a great place to live. There are also many in Hollywood, Westwood, Palms, and all over the Valley. In the Valley, you can go up to some of these big apartment complexes and a tanned, grinning person will come, show you around the whole building, and treat you like royalty. You should try this just for fun, even if you end up deciding that the Valley is hot, smoggy, and boring.
