Moving to Vancouver for a year in 6 weeks time. Just myself, wife and a three year old son. Hoping to find a flat before we get there so as to avoid paying for expensive service apartment. Target area Kits.........
I am not sure how do people go about looking for and renting a flat in Vancouver. Any advice will be appreciated.

hi,

You could try looking on www.criagslist.ca they have loads of rentals / sale properties around Vancouver also you could try www.househunting.ca. Hope this helps.

Thanks,

MR79

the craigslist one is a bit awkward... try this link instead

Vancouver appartment search

there's also this one

MLS

Very good websites to start my search. Lots of flats on them. Hope shouldn't be too hard finding a suitable one. Thanks alot!

To be honest I wouldn't commit to anything without seeing it, standards vary a lot. It's best to find somewhere temporary & look around.

Moving day always seems to be 1st of the month. On 1 May there will be hundreds of students leaving Kits so their accommodation will be advertised from 1st April so there will certainly be a lot of adverts.

The pick of the websites
http://www.makeyourselfathome.com/available_weekly.html
http://www.amsrentsline.com/
http://www.myhomevancouver.com/search.aspx
http://www.facultyassociation.ubc.ca/housing_search.php

Google maps also shows the transit options
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&dirf...-na-us-gns-trs

We live in the Arbutus area just south of Kits which is slightly less densely populated. It just depends what you are looking for.
Helen

ditto what Helen said about seeing a place first - do you have someone there that can view a rental for you before you land>?? if not it may be best to book yourselves into a "suite" type thing for when you land and then look yourself.

Says she who rented a crappy rental on line from craiglist before leaving the Uk - but hey ho - I have cleaned it to within an inch of its life and its functional 0-and we leave next month!!

This means that I will be arriving BC at an odd time then. Probably touch down first week April and no earlier. Bad timing. Nevertheless those websites are good. Thanks!
Since both you and 4bells thinks that we should not rent off the internet, we will now most probably get somewhere for a week/10 days first when in BC.

Oh dear! Leaving already! Is there something we do not yet know about Vancouver.............

I think she has just bought herself a nice house.

yup as Jon says - bought a house

Well done and congratulations! Good luck with the house move.