Geordie Lass

Hi

I've been talking to a friend who lives in the states and he says our lives would be a lot easier when we land if we went with a realtor. I said I thought they only helped you when you were buying a property. He says they help you find rentals too.

Do they? if so how many of you used one?

If they are a good thing to use - does anyone know any good ones for NW and SW Calgary area? We will be renting for 12 months or more - well until we get PR so that could be anyone's guess (Provided the LMO is positive that is!)

Thanks!

Almost Canadian

No.

Anything they can do you can do yourself. When buying a house they are "free" as the vendor pays them. They do not work for free so are likely to want paying for sorting you out with a rental. As I said, something you can do yourself.

Former Lancastrian

A quick google of Calgary rental properties brings up lots of info.
Yes it is something you can do yourself. The only advantage of working with a realtor is that they should know the area and guide you in choosing an area suited to your needs. Obviously dependent on fees you decide if its worth the fee or not.

RKS_in_Calgary

no experience of using a realtor for renting (only buying) but check out rentfaster.ca, kijiji etc for rental property - you can do it yourself although I'm sure realtors would be happy to help you but as others said, i expect this may come with a pricetag

snowcandy

We were given the name of a local realtor by OH's company as part of all our relocation bumph. When we rang her about rentals she said she didn't deal with them and advised us to look on rentfaster and homerent. It's easy to do yourself.

Check online before you get here and get a printout of the places you think look ok. Drive by the properties first and then arrange your viewings so you don't waste time. We found it pretty straightforward to do and apart from dragging kids around numerous houses (it was Jan so too cold to leave them sat in the car for long!) it wasn't that stressful. However we were very lucky to find a nice house and a great landlord.

Any idea whereabouts you want to be?

Geordie Lass

Thanks for all the replies guys.

Snowcandy - yes within 10 mins of the C-Train - Shawnessy looking good at the mo. I wanted to live NW but husband is insistent on a very short commute (he does 90 mins each way almost every day here!)

Really - anywhere that is within a short walk of the C-train we will consider.

JonboyE

Who will the realtor be working for? If they are working for the landlord their job is to find a suitable tenant for their client - not to help you find a home. They charge the landlord a fee - typically half a month's rent.

I don't know of any realtors that work exclusively for tenants seeking homes I don't think the available commissions justify the amount of effort needed. You might be able to find someone who is prepared to spend some time with you now in the hope of you remembering them when you come to buy.

I would drop into a realtor's office and have a chat Explain your situation that you want to rent for a year until your PR comes through, then you want to buy However, you want to rent in an area where you would be happy to buy to avoid further disrupting your kid's lives. Then make the most of what advice you are given.

Geordie Lass

Thanks - that's great advice - we will take it. We really need to get the rental right as we *really* don't want our son having to move schools twice.

TaffCan

if in shawnessey then by me... still 30 - 40 min commute on ctrain though, but no traffic jams!!

Realtors so not do rentals.

Geordie Lass

Thanks

Are prices of places closer than Shawnessey not a lot more expensive tho?

Almost Canadian

There are expensive houses in Shawnessy, there are less expensive houses close to downtown. Location has little to do with it. The price, to a large extent, is dependent upon the house.

Alberta_Rose

What size or type of house are you looking for? This one on our road in Arbour Lake is for rent.

http://www.rentfaster.ca/calgary-hou...RJTkc3NTA0MQ==

dbd33

That's a very odd rental offering. An ugly house, all garage, in a classic barren North American suburb, so far so bad. But 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms and yet no pets and no one under 18 allowed; is it specifically intended as a grow op?

mandymoochops

lol I wondered that too - the no under 18 stipulation is a strange one.

If you have kids at home that are over 18 they are far more likely to create havoc with parties than say, a 7 year old would!

dbd33

It might work for a family from a culture where the parents may visit for months at a time. I worked with a guy who bitched constantly about the burden of having to keep a mansion in case both sets of parents arrived at once (fortunately, him being from Manchester, I could say "knock it off, Manjit"). That would make sense if it was in Brampton where most of the population is Indian but I don't know the ethnic make up of Arbour Lake.