uprightdog

I am moving to Vancouver on August 3rd, and currently I am discovering how hard it can be to find a place to live. I am looking to rent a one-bedroom suite, in a decent area, for no more than $1000 per month. Does anyone know of such a place, or can anyone recommend a good source for such places? My main strategy at the moment is to obsessively scan craigslist, but very few advertiser's even bother to reply to emails.

If the worst comes to the worst and I cannot find a permanent place before August 3rd - can anyone suggest a decent, cheap hotel, in which I could base myself temporarily?

Cheers.

The TWs

Try craigslist!

uprightdog

Thanks, but I already am (as stated)!

Hudman

http://www.bruceward.com/

startwin

I sent you a PM. As regards hotels, if you need the west end try the Sandman, or Coast Plaza, there's also a Best Western on Burrard.

The TWs

Ooops sorry! missed that!

uprightdog

Thanks. I've seen Bruceward mentioned here before. Unfortunately I have emailed them twice and they haven't bothered to even reply.

Judy in Calgary

When my son spent a year in Vancouver (September 2005 - August 2006), he said it was worthwhile to sign up with one of the rental websites that charged a fee to view its offerings. His hunt for an apartment gained a lot more traction as soon as he did that.

He stayed in a short-term furnished apartment while he looked for an unfurnished apartment that he could rent for a year. He said that too was worth it, even if it did feel expensive at the time. If push comes to shove, you could stay in an apartment hotel or suite hotel. If you're on a really strict budget, you could stay in a hostel, which has communal kitchen facilities.

The other thing my son was very glad about was that he inspected apartments in person before he signed a lease. A couple of places that had looked good on the Internet turned out to be bad when he viewed them in real life.

I also recommend the Brits2Vancouver forum. It contains a wealth of information on Vancouver, more than this forum does -- not surprisingly, since it specializes in Vancouver.

Rob_999

Realistically you're not going to find somewhere until after you arrive. Rental contracts normally start on the 1st of the month, and most tenants need to give a months notice... so basically you'll need to find somewhere to stay for 4-5 weeks when you arrive.

Bruceward is an option to cover the 4-5 weeks as they do short term fully furnished rentals. We used them and I would recommend - however they're not cheap.

Best way to find a place is to check craigslist / Vancouver Sun / or just wander around a neighbourhood you like and look for vacancy signs. Best time to look is at the beginning of the month when tenants have just handed in their notice.

$1,000/mth for a one bed is doable, but its at the lower end of the market in the downtown core areas. By the way, most properties come unfurnished...

DaviesHN

Hi
Some short term cheap places for you to consider (also checkout their cancellation strategy in case you find somewhere quickly)
http://www.hihostels.ca/PM/en/vancou...x?sortcode=2.2
http://www.ubcconferences.com/accommodation
http://www.ywcahotel.com/

It's very difficult to obtain accommodation from abroad, there are so many more people here with cash in hand on the ground. I would agree with Judy that you should definately inspect somewhere you are intending to stay more than a few nights in person - some of the accommodation is awful!

Another piece of bad news is that if you are looking at student areas then there will be thousands of them here in the first week of August doing exactly the same (although they will probably want 1Sept move in date so you may have an advantage) You need to view the following websites & find the places that have been most recently posted (keep doing refresh). Our phone rang off the hook when we had an ad in. And we rarely let to people from abroad unseen (although I always replied)

http://vancouver.renting.canada.com/...searchForm.php
http://www.amsrentsline.com/
http://www.myhomevancouver.com/default.aspx
http://www.sublet.com/Index.asp
http://www.makeyourselfathome.com/available_weekly.html

There is loads of turnover in accommodation - you just need to know how to play the game!
Good Luck
Helen

Yoong

Links from the local newspaper ads. and temporary summer housing in SFU.

http://www.van.net/rew/vannet.nsf/na...60&Expand=13.3

http://www.sfu.ca/conference-accommodation/rates.html
Good luck.
Yoong

antheas

Yes, as others have said, Craigslist is a great source, but with the market in Vancouver the way it is at the moment, I don't think any landlord would be bothered with the hassle of renting to an "absentee tenant" if you know what I mean. I would suggest that you find something short-term, so that you can then look for something more permanent once you're here. Try contacting Marilyn Bell at Bell Accommodation - the company have contracts with homeowners all over the city - but mostly on the West side and she offers short-term (3 months - maybe less, and can be extended) rental of suites in people's houses (sometimes it's shared accommodation, but some are just self-contained suites. They're all fully furnished with telephone, internet - and some of them are really gorgeous. Marilyn caters mostly to students, however, during the four years that we've rented out our basement through Marylin, we have had couples in similar circumstances to you. She's always incredibly busy, so if you register on the website (www.bellacc.com) and don't hear back from her, you can email me and I will give her a push in your direction!

live to ski

Yes rental market is crazy in Vancouver at the moment. Most places are 12 month contracts and are unfurnished so good luck on the trip to Ikea! You can sub-let though.

Don't pay to sign up to some rental website. Just stay in one of the places that Helen gave links to. Then once here just bombard craigslist and go to all the viewings. It's too easy for landlords to rent to bother with emailing people not here. Also walk round the area you like the look of and look for 'vacency signs'. There are a few up at the moment.

We have a nice one-bed place in central downtown (Thurlow between Robson and Haro / Smithe, if you've been studying googlemaps) for which we pay $1,100 including internet, but we have to pay for electric. Our neighbour is in a studio or batchelor as they call them here and he pays $900.

Coal Harbour and False Creek generally more expensive, and the West End cheaper unless there are good views.

bazzz

Just to reiterate what other people have said: get something temporary (we used Bruce Ward, give them a ring if they're not responding to your e-mails - we actually found them very helpful and professional). Then once you're here it's a lot easier to set something up. Craigslist, and a few other sites will help, but you can also just walk round the likely areas as many of the buildings will have a building manager who you can ask about availability. Some of the blocks will even advertise vacancies outside. You should be able to get a 1-bed in the West End within your budget in one of the older (1950s-70s) blocks.

uprightdog

Thanks for all the advice. I have given up on finding somewhere in advance of my arrival, and gone down the temporary accommodation route with Bruce Ward (having called them). It is certainly not a cheap option, but it is very convenient and will only be for a month whilst I find something more permanent.