La Condessa Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 Our landlords sold our house, and we have to be out by May 1st. We have been searching for a new rental for 6 weeks, and have moved on from looking for what we want (3 bedroom w/ yard in our town) to looking for anything that could work (only 2 bedrooms, town south of here, apartments). We wanted to move by today, since I am due with our fourth on May 8th. My Momma instincts keep telling me to get nesting, and I'm about ready to pull my hair out from the stress. We have $345/month currently budgeted towards paying down debt/emergency use which may be diverted to housing costs if absolutely necessary. Our current options: -The 3bd house near our town which would only be ~$200 above what we are currently paying, but we would have to purchase a washer, dryer, and refrigerator, and is across the street from a meth house which dh has handled 4 major arrests out of. -3 bedroom in our town with basically no yard which would come to ~$350 over what we are paying now-leaving no emergency funds, no $ for paying off upcoming hospital bills, no more paying down student loans. -Maybe a 3 bedroom apartment we'd have to buy washer and dryer for, don't know if price includes utilities or not, might be $100 less to ~$100 more than we pay now. It's in a busy parking lot by the main road, so no letting the kids go outside at all except when I can take them all to the park, which will be harder to do with a newborn. -There are several nice duplexes in the town south of here that, with commuting costs for dh factored in, would come to ~350 over what we are paying; again eating up all our debt repayment/emergency money. I just don't get it. The other two times we've looked for rentals in this town it wasn't anything like this hard. We knew the duplex we live in now was a good deal with utilities included, but it wasn't hard to find others for the same price without utilities. Now, there's basically nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 Have you posted to Craig's list and/or your local areas Facebook page? I see a lot of rentals listed there. The problem is, at least in our area, rentals are becoming harder and harder to find as so many more people are renting vs. buying their own homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 #3 and invest in a really good carrier that works for your body type etc. That way you can carry baby at the park instead of pushing a stroller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted March 31, 2014 Author Share Posted March 31, 2014 I'm waiting for the apartment's owner to call back about going to see it. I guess we will probably have to go with that one if nothing else turns up, though I really hope that month-to-month is an option. I would rather move into a 2 bedroom and have all my kids in one room than give up their hours playing outside every day (and my garden), but nothing else is available right now. My dh thinks we should move to the town south of here, but I think he is being unrealistic about the finances. ETA: yes, we've used Craigslist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cera Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 I have never had much luck finding rentals during the school year. It seems like a lot more opens up starting mid june. Is there any way you can find a temporary solution for the month of may and wait to see what is advertised starting around May 1st for rent after June 1st. You would probably have a lot more options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 The meth house option should not be considered at all. Sorry there are so few options. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 Have you gone through property management companies? They don't always advertise all of their options in the local paper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 So 2 and 4 are financially equivalent. Comparing those two I would pick the house. But I wouldn't actually choose either because I'd want to keep getting out of debt. I would be willing to forgo my debt payments for a couple of months in order to build a deposit or something, but not month after month for a long time. Meth house is out. My pick would be the place where you have to go to the park. Newborns are not newborns for very long and once you get to the park w/some food you can spend long times there with the upcoming season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 I'm with everyone else. Meth house shouldn't even be on your list. Safety is more important than having a yard, and really, if you're across the street from a meth house, would you ever feel safe being outside in your yard with your kids? I know I wouldn't. Why aren't you considering other towns in the area? Are they more expensive? Personally, I would prefer smaller square footage and no yard if that was the only way I could afford to live in a safe neighborhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Are you on Facebook? Try posting what you are looking for and having friends share your post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 I'd move into an affordable apartment with an eye towards moving in another year or so once the baby is older and you've had time to look for what you really want. As long as all of the choices are less than ideal, you may as well go with one that allows you to save for the next step. Your kids are so young you'd need to watch them outside no matter where you lived anyway, so it's not like you could get a nap in if you had a back yard. Have you looked at any two bedroom apartments or houses? You may find one that is configured in a way that works for you. My sister once had a nursery in a walk-in closet that was bigger than our bedroom growing up :-/ Sometimes dining rooms are off to the side enough to work as an extra bedroom. There could be basement rooms that don't 'count' as bedrooms, but would allow you to sleep all of the kids in a bedroom and use the basement for a massive playroom. You may happen upon a two bedroom with a living AND family room and you could use one of those as a kid-space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitten18 Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Are you on Facebook? Try posting what you are looking for and having friends share your post. I agree. Make sure EVERYONE knows you are looking for a rental. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted April 1, 2014 Author Share Posted April 1, 2014 Have you gone through property management companies? They don't always advertise all of their options in the local paper. Yes, we've been talking with both of the property management companies in our town. Why aren't you considering other towns in the area? Are they more expensive? Personally, I would prefer smaller square footage and no yard if that was the only way I could afford to live in a safe neighborhood. The next town south of here where we've looked at the duplexes is the closest town. There is also a very tiny town 45 miles north of here I have been checking, but have seen nothing in our price range. We live in a pretty sparsely populated county. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 I just saw your kid's ages. When mine were that age we lived in a 800 sq ft 2bd/2bath apartment. It is doable when they are young. We used the dining "area" as their play area and 1 bedroom for 3 of them and 1 of the twins slept in my room. Kitchen had a breakfast bar and we ate there. Look for 2 bedrooms. And I agree #1 should be off the list.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto10blessings Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 The meth house option should not be considered at all. Sorry there are so few options. :grouphug: I Agree. Hope you find something and can settle in before baby arrives Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Sorry this is hitting you at a time when a new baby is arriving! I just wanted to mention that washers and dryers are often for sale on Craig's list and around here, there are warehouses who refurbish them and sell them at a reduced price. Maybe worth checking into to save some money. Have you announced your need to find a different home among friends, church, acquaintances, etc. The personal network can work well. Not all available rentals are advertised publicly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alicia64 Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 I want to put in a word for apartments -- and many come with washer/dryer combos. I loved living in an apartment -- and that was after ten years in a nice house. The apt. had two pools and two play areas for the kids. I would never move in across the street to a meth house. I agree that safety is more important than anything. Only downside I found to apts. -- besides low square footage -- is that tenants tend to be transitory. So we'd become friendly with a family who would move. That was a bummer, but the pool was a blast. I often wish we hadn't left. The other neat thing about an apt -- you just call maintenance and, for the most part, they show up and "fix" the problem. No, they don't do a perfect fix, but their fixes aren't usually bad. Good luck -- I'd run with "thinking outside of the box." Alley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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