The struggle to rent in Charlotte is real

My boyfriend and I are currently in month five in our housing search, and to be basic for one second let me say, “the struggle is real.” We’re mostly looking at duplexes and quads, and have established these home preferences: (1) At least 1.5 bathrooms, (2) enough closet space to hide my ever-growing pile of shoes, (3) the ability to have a washer and dryer (hook-ups are fine), (4) preferably not a huge cookie-cutter building and (5) rent that is no more than $1,350. Seems reasonable enough right?

Well, that’s what we thought until we started contacting people about their listings on Zillow, Realtor.com, Apartments.com, Craigslist, you name it. The first issue we ran into was getting people to actually respond to our inquiries. Some took a week or two if we were lucky, but most of the time we didn’t hear back at all.

Those that were kind enough to get back to us usually were “very sorry to inform us that the unit we were interested in has been leased.” Our first question that came to our mind was, had they gotten back to us earlier or answered their phones in the first place would that still be the case? The world may never know.

The biggest thing that we’ve learned thus far is that working with property management companies sucks. I’m sorry to be blunt and don’t want to use any specific company names, but wow. I don’t know how many times I pressed 1,2,3 all the way through an automated system only to be sent to some obscure voicemail box which I imagine the “property managers” sitting around laughing their way through the desperate messages left by poor, hopeful twenty-somethings like myself. Dramatic? Maybe.

Then, the moment comes when the heavens open up and you actually get a showing. There may be only one blurry picture showing a seemingly okay bedroom, but pickiness is just not an option. You arrive hopeful and eager, only to have your dreams cut down room by room.

A living room that will only fit one of your pieces of furniture? Maybe you can make it work. The kitchen hasn’t been updated since 1978? You convince yourself to embrace the retro (read: dirty) feel. The closet can hold exactly one pair of boots? That’s where you draw the line.

Again and again, wading through the new listing emails only to re-enter into the cycle of ignored correspondence, $20 viewing fees (you read that right) and disappointing showings. Guys, it’s rough out there. To all those currently in the same boat, just know you’re not the only one.

May the odds be ever in your favor.

Photo: Claire Kuhlkin

This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 11:18 PM with the headline "The struggle to rent in Charlotte is real."