Update on the HUNT

First, I am sorry I haven't posted anything for so long.  Nothing exciting or interesting is happening to us right now.  Now to the HUNT.

Every waking minute, it seems, we are hunched over our computers checking Craigslist. In the car, at restaurants we are on our IPhones checking Craigslists. Then we call to make appointments.  No one ever ever answers the phone.  Messages and emails are left.  If they call back the place has usually been rented.  Every now and then we do look at an apartment.

We went to view an apartment that was 700 square feet.  That is huge for a 1 bedroom in our price range.  It couldn't have been over 500 square feet.  I said it was small to the manager.  He said he had noticed the owner had put the wrong size.  So he couldn't tell me on the phone the correct size?

Yesterday we saw a really nice apartment: nice neighborhood, hardwood floors, fair sized kitchen with a gas stove, a little dining room, a garage, and on the ground floor.  One huge problem, closets or lack there of.  Bedroom closet would hold maybe 8 hangers and 2 pairs of shoes.  Hall closet would hold 3 pairs of shoes and 15 hangers.  No place for towels, sheets, vacuum sweeper, cleaning supplies, no storage.  I looked at the dining area and said we could get rolling racks and use it for a closet.  Wouldn't that be charming?

This morning we have an appointment in the next county.  The pictures are really nice, write up sounds good.  But who knows, some apartment owners write fantasy. 

Stay tuned.


P.S.  Tomorrow is 12/12/12.  It seems this will be a major day for weddings.  I am going in all day to perform marriage ceremonies.  I have missed being at the Marriage Factory.  I miss the staff and miss the warm feeling of love in the room.

The Hunt is on

Craigslists for rent section has become our bible.  I am constantly on it looking for updates of apartments that appeal to me.  I call for appointments.  I email for appointments.  Many never send an answer.  It is a frustrating process.

We started physically looking for an apartment on Tuesday.  The pickings are mighty slim.  The first place we asked to see the apartment that had just been listed that morning.  It was rented.  The person never saw it, just pictures.  They gave a credit card number and it was theirs.  Never saw it.  Who does that?

The guideline for the first day was how far south of Oakland will we go.  After one afternoon, we knew we were too far south.  It took too long to get to where we volunteer, go to church, and where Marty works.  Great apartments, just not for us. 

Next up was San Leandro.  We lived there several months during our remodel.  A nice little town with a great library, some good restaurants, and lots and lots of apartments.  There were two duplexes that we wanted to see.  We went to the property management company to get the key.  The only way we could get a key was to pay $25 per person for the privilege of filling out an application.  Now applications always cost money.  But that is for a place you know you want to live in.  We haven't seen the places, and no refund.  They also wanted to see our Social Security cards.  The number was not good enough.  No one wants the card, just the number.  Guess where our cards are.  Safely locked up in the safe in the storage unit. 

We went to Social Security and ordered replacement cards.  I have to say how the San Leandro office was.  Very very helpful.  And not the strange clients that Oakland has.  Not a bad experience

We saw some awful places.  And we saw a place I could be happy living in.  It is even a ground floor apartment.  It is at the upper limit of our budget.  But there is hope that picky spoiled me can find a new home.

Until I find that place we will stay with our incredible friends

It is a bad, rude, wicked world

We are apartment hunting.  We have steps, lots of steps. Steps in the house, steps up to the street, steps to the parking pad, steps down to the back of the house.  STEPS! We have bad knees and bad feet.  We have aging hips.  These do not go with steps. So a need to move.

I have been on Craigslist every day, several times a day for weeks.  I send emails asking to view, no response.  I call managers, listing agents, and owners, the majority don't respond.  Rude, Miss Manners would have something to say about them. 

The pictures in the listing will be lovely, then you google the address. When you zoom in, you can see the bars on the windows and doors. Tough neighborhoods.  Not an area a nice chicken hearted senior citizen would last in.  I would have to give the kids on the corner my lunch money.

I did get quick responses back from a few listings.  Nice area, square footage I want, in our price range.  The emails would tell me the owner was working overseas in England, Germany, Ireland, South Africa for the next 5 years.  They had moved and accidentally brought the keys with them.  If I would send them 3 months rent, the security deposit, my social security number, and a picture; they would send me the keys and the apartment was mine.  Well, you just know Marty and I couldn't get the money in the mail fast enough. The sad truth is people are falling for this scam.  I have received emails back more than once with the very same message.

Some of the listings are so funny. Sidebar:  Oakland is on the San Francisco Bay.  Most view homes are up in the hills.  We call the water views South Bay, North Bay, Golden Gate View.  Downtown Oakland has some lovely apartments, that start at 500 square feet and are very expensive, say starting at $2200 a month.   Downtown Oakland is in the flats, not up in the hills.  So there is a listing that says 

$925  2 br 2 ba, Italian palace   1250 square feet   Intercoastal views. Gorgeous pictures were posted of every room.  It then gave a street address.

Too cheap for the size and area. The pictures for sure came from Architectural Digest. That street listed, no way you could see the Bay from there. Guess what, we don't use the term intercoastal here, that is more Florida, South Carolina, or Georgia.  It did make me laugh out loud.

I will continue to search for a new home.