Living with your parents has its benefits. You don’t have to pay for monthly rent. Electricity and water bills? It’s Dad and Mom who takes care of it.
But there comes a time when the boy becomes a man and the baby girl turns into a lady.
Yes, going solo has a lot of benefits, though it would be more expensive for you. But that’s another blog post for another time. If you’re set to go solo because your family is in the suburbs and you don’t want to suffer the slower-than-turtle Manila rush hour, then go ahead, look for an apartment to rent in the Metro.
Here are some ways that will help you get a good apartment to rent.
Check out the Sunday Classified Ads of Manila Bulletin.
Look for the one where there are listing of cars for sale. The section on Houses and Apartments for rent are just there. Sometimes the listings are categorized according to city. Most of the time, the monthly rent is listed next to the apartment, but sometimes it’s not. Highlight the listings you like plus the phone numbers and call away!
Get a copy of Buy and Sell Magazine.
Buy and Sell magazine contains a lot of apartment and house listings. You can find a lot of information in each listing–the number of bedrooms, whether it has a garage or not, and the amount of the monthly rent. When I was in my apartment hunting mode, I would just cut the listings I like, put them together and then, call the numbers listed.
Look for listings online.
It’s a digital world. Thankfully, websites such as Sulit.com.ph, Ayosdito.ph, and Manila.Craigslist.com can help you hunt for the right apartment. As long as important information are listed and you can call the number, go ahead, do it! You can also do a simple Google search to look for other websites that list apartments.
Ask your friends for leads on apartments to rent.
Of course, you can always ask your friends. If you have a friend, or two, or three, who are willing, then you can rent an apartment together. Some of your friends may also live in apartment compounds, condo, or neighborhood where apartments open up for renters. Go ahead and ask them.
Here’s an important tip: After making a call, visit the apartments whose location and terms you like. Make sure to ask about safety and floods in the area.
Identify the places you want to rent an apartment and spend a day walking or driving around those places.
When I got married and I was looking for an apartment, I borrowed my brother-in-law’s car and my wife and I drove around the Project 8, Project 7, Bago Bantay, and Congressional Avenue areas to look for a good apartment. We just had to keep an eye out for announcements at the gates. Electric posts also serve as billboards for these announcements.
This method is time consuming, I know. It’s even more time consuming if you’re commuting and walking around neighborhoods. But this might be more effective.
How else do you look for an apartment to rent for in Manila? Do you have additional suggestions on how to look for one?