Once again I am apartment hunting and once again It Is Not Going Well. However, I think I'm getting a lot better at it. And this is one of only two rants I'll do on the subject this time around.
Job Search:
It occurred to me that anyone looking for writers or editors on Craigslist is either clueless or trying to score a cheap deal. Because when I think about how many writers I know (and I know A LOT of writers) who send their resumes and clips out to every single newspaper or magazine in the area and aren't getting hired (which is also a lot of people) it seems to me that any legitimate newspaper or mag capable of actually paying someone is not exactly lacking in potential employees. They hire and promote the employees they can barely afford to keep In House or recruit through colleges or local talent or agented submissions. Having to actually go out and look, even advertise, is not the mark of a flourishing or worthwhile publication unless you are advertising on an actual, well established, professional writer's job market forum. Craigslist just looks like you threw up a vague idea in hopes that someone else will help with your vague idea for cheap or even free.
THINGS THAT SHOULD BE IN YOUR CRAIGSLIST HOUSING AD
First, of course, THINGS YOU CANNOT PUT IN YOUR CRAIGSLIST AD
Any language that states a preference for certain types of people. It is illegal by federal law to discriminate against tenants due to race, religion, national origin, familial status, disability (physical or mental), gender or age. And in New Hampshire, the law also includes sexual orientation and marital status.
Do these laws apply to everyone? No. If, for example, you are looking for a roommate, then you can state a preference for a gender or age or family type ("looking to share with another single mom"). You can even ask for a certain race or religion, but you have to tread carefully. You can say "I'd like an Indian roommate" but you can't say "No white people". You can say "Looking for another Christian" but you can't say "do not email me if you are not Saved".
None of it applies if you're a landlord who owns four or less units and/or lives on the property. And by "none of it applies", I mean, you can discriminate as much as you want, however, you can't say so on Craigslist. Craigslist has its own internal TOS in addition to the laws of the countries it hosts boards for. Breaking the rules you agreed to when you posted your ad can get your ad "flagged", removed, even get you permanently banned.
It is also illegal in New Hampshire to charge first and last month's rent PLUS security. You can charge last month's rent OR security but NOT BOTH. A lot of people don't know this, so tenants probably won't call you on it, but if you still do it after knowing it's not legal, you're a gigantic creep.
There is no excuse for not including any of the following. Craigslist ads are free (except for certain professional categories that aren't Housing) so you can include as much information as you want.
Why should you include this information? Because Craigslist visitors will have to scroll through hundreds of ads, deciding which ones to click on and which ones to take time out of their day to respond to. You have to give them a reason to click on yours.
Things Your Ad Needs:
Coherent sentences in English: Or whatever language the rest of your Craigslist board speaks. Type out the whole word, correctly spelled, without overuse of teenage/internet slang and multiple exclamation points. Ads that look like they were typed by concussed children or stoners don't work out too well. If you need help, ask for it.
Complete description: Size, whether it is a walkup or has an elevator, which floor it's on, how many bathrooms and what kind, full kitchen, kitchenette or lack of cooking facilities, how many bedrooms, what else is in the neighborhood, security, laundry, parking, internet/cable, age of the place, etc. You have no business renting the place out if you can't answer those questions. And you may feel that these questions can just be answered when the tenant comes to look at the place but there are a lot of people who won't even answer your ad if they don't see this information in it. I know what I want and I want to know if you have it.
A picture: One photo of the outside, one of each room in the unit, or one photo of the outside and one photo that shows as much of the unit as possible. Photos do not have to look like professional magazine work but they should be clear, in focus, well sized, decently lit and the right side up. There are many affordable digital cameras out now, and plenty of easy to use free photo editing programs (they often come with the camera, whether you wanted them or not). Picassa, Photobucket, Flicker, among others are all free or semi free online photo storage sites that also provide editing tools. Remember, Craigslist is not Ebay, you don't pay a fee per picture.
Once again, if this is too hard for you, please ask for help. But you're not getting points for effort, no one's going to look at your upside down picture of a staircase and think “Oh, I'll contact him about this apartment because he's really trying.”
Your address: Normally, you would not put this on a public site online where strangers might see it and come to your home or place of business, but this time, you want them to. It's the whole point. Now, you don't have to give them all the info in public all at once. You can just list the street and name/number of the building, or just the street and get into which unit and where to park when you're making the appointment to meet the tenant. But you have got to give them something. They need to know what town it's in- just saying “New Hampshire” is not enough. New Hampshire is roughly the size of Wales (and it's one of the US's smallest states). That's like saying the apartment is located in “Wales”. WHERE in Wales? If the town or city is large enough, people like to know what neighborhood too, where in Brooklyn? What about the street? Streets can matter when it comes to bus stops, school districts, crime rates, and property values. Even what part of the street matters- the road I live on goes on for eighteen miles and passes through four towns and two states and the two ends could not be more different.
So give them something that tells them where your property for rent or sale is located, so they can decide whether they want to live there or not before they go out and see it. And don't lie, if they're locals, they'll suss you out.
Craigslist househunters usually search by location and price, so the more specific the location, the more likely you are to attract a potential tenant who is looking for exactly what you have. You don't want to cast the widest net possible, you want to close the deal, then you want to target people who will definitely want what you're selling. If I'm in Portsmouth and looking to stay there, I will only be annoyed by the ads for your apartment labeled “New Hampshire” that turns out to be Claremont. If I want to move to Claremont, I will type “Claremont” into the search box, thank you very much.
Only putting the state, or region of the state, also indicates you might be a scammer. Maybe you don't know where the apartment is located because you took a photo of someone else's house while driving past or scanned it from a magazine. And why so coy when I press the issue? If you're not a scammer, why are you afraid to tell me where you are? Yeah, I could be a serial killer or burglar but no one can rent from you if they DON'T KNOW HOW TO FIND YOUR HOUSE. At some point, you have to tell me.
How much it costs, including utilities and any fees: Shouldn't this one be so obvious I don't have to mention it? Apparently not! Craigslist is not an auction site (seriously, this is a hot button issue for Craigslisters). Yes, you can include an OBO (“or best offer”) clause, although Craigslisters tend to resent those if they are not in proportion with what the item is worth, but don't try to induce bidding wars. If you insist on haggling, first of all,mention the negotiable rent in the ad. Then make sure haggling for price is what you actually want to do- forcing tenants to guess how much the place costs and then refusing to budge an inch on the price is not haggling, it's some kind of weird gameshow. If you want people to bid on your home, go through a Realtor or auction house.
Make sure that you're clear on whether the price is by month, by week, or by the night, and that the price in your subject line is the same as the price in the body of your ad.
Tenants search Craigslist by price as well as location. So putting a price close to what you want to rent/sell for in the subject line of your ad can't hurt your chances. Someone might've told you to cast as wide a net as possible by not naming a price, that person was wrong. It only annoys everyone. It either makes them suspect a scam, or they assume that if they have to ask, they can't afford it. Oh, and it screws up their search parameters.
Mention the utilities. They're gonna ask anyway. Also mention any fees for credit checking, especially if they are over $10 and non refundable.
Pets, yes or no: DUH. There are pet people, and then there are non pet people, which one do you want? Better make sure you know and make sure they know too, whether they're allowed pets (and what kind) and whether there are already pets on the property. Man, guy in Candia? I was going to rent your apartment but the fact that you didn't tell me “shared backyard” meant “shared with the neighbor's large and hyperactive dog” was a major deal breaker.
Other requirements for renters: Do you require employment? If you require minimum income levels, then dude, find some legal way to indicate that before the tenant arrives to view the place (and DO NOT pretend these don't exist, you know it, I know it, but not everyone does). Are you age restricted? Subsidized? Section 8 eligible? Does the landlord live on site? Where does the landlord live?
A phone number and/or email address that you have daily access to: If you are worried about posting your private phone number in public, post one that you don't mind strangers having access to. Don't have one of those? Stick to email until after you meet the tenant in person. Worried about giving out your email? Craigslist allows you to “anonymize” your address. The link will appear as a series of random numbers and letters, the other person won't see your real address unless you respond to their email.
And can I make a plea on behalf of everyone? Don't demand that responders only contact you by phone. It's the 21st century and if you don't want email responses, stop posting on the internet For Pete's Sake. Criminy!
Next time: What to do if someone responds to your ad.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Sunday, August 29, 2010
A couple of pictures from a birthday trip to AGP in Natick.
At Hampton Beach State Park, two women on the beach left their food exposed and unattended and this is what they came back to.
I am shocked, I tell you, shocked.
They threw rocks at the birds, because everyone knows birds can tell the difference between when you've left food for them on purpose, and when you're coming back for it and gulls haven't become addicted to scavenging off humans due to generations of humans feeding them.
At Hampton Beach State Park, two women on the beach left their food exposed and unattended and this is what they came back to.
I am shocked, I tell you, shocked.
They threw rocks at the birds, because everyone knows birds can tell the difference between when you've left food for them on purpose, and when you're coming back for it and gulls haven't become addicted to scavenging off humans due to generations of humans feeding them.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Kaya tries her hand at being a Traveling Doll
Kaya visits Columbus, Ohio
(Note: None of the pictures are mine, they were taken by her host, Romperoo, and most of the text was also written by the host family)
I felt a little awkward around the other girls. But I liked Laura.
(This is Laura)
The house I stayed in
I got to go to the Anthony Thomas candy store!
http://www.anthony-thomas.com/
This is called a Buckeye, like the state nut of Ohio. Romperoo explained that Buckeyes are a nut from the official state tree. The nuts have a hard brown casing around them which cracks open and looks like the eye of a deer (buck eye). While you can't eat those nuts, you CAN eat the buckeye candies! They are chocolate coated peanut butter tidbits that are delicious!
This giant version weighs 235 pounds and costs $3500!
How to make a Buckeye (I am going to do this!)
http://candy.about.com/od/fruitnutcandy/r/buckeyes.htm
Jeffers Mound (as it is known today) is prehistoric mound is all that remains of a much larger complex of earthworks that once occupied this site, a dramatic 60-foot bluff overlooking the Olentangy River. The earthworks are believed to have been built by the Hopewell people between 100 BC and AD 400, although archeologists have found signs of human habitation at this site dating back to 8,000 BC.
There were once an estimated 10,000 American Indian mounds and earthworks in the central Ohio Valley. Today, about 1,000 of these ancient landmarks have survived through efforts of private landowners, local, state and federal agencies and conservation groups. Of those sites, only about 73 are open to the general public or visible from public places.
We walked around the mound and tried to find remnants of the remaining earthworks. We all imagined what it would have been like so long ago, before farmers tore up the land and before cars went whizzing by
http://www.worthington.org/about/jeffersmound.cfm
Romperoo has headed out for the day for a girl's scrapbooking getaway with her friends. But before she left, she told us that she was going to come back tonight because... we are going to a Columbus Crew MLS soccer game tonight! I am so excited. I wish I had a vuvuzela!
Wow! That Crew game was so exciting! They won 2-0 and secured the lead in the league. Romperoo's DD had to fill me in on all the details because I had to sit in the car and listen. Bad storms were supposed to come in that night and I did not want to get my freshly braided hair messed up!
This morning, Mr. Romperoo also took us to the Columbus Zoo (but forgot the camera!) to walk through the North American and Polar exhibit. The bison was HUGE!
http://www.thecrew.com/
I still felt awkward and out of place
But I got cheered up when we went to the North Market
We piled in the car and headed downtown today. First we had a stop at the Santa Maria on the Scioto (say "sigh-oh-toe" or "sigh-oh-tuh") River. The ship is a life-size replica and the most accurate replica of the original boat. We could not imagine crossing an ocean with huge waves in this 98' vessel!
http://www.thesantamariaexperiment.iwarp.com/
It is so ridiculously hot and muggy. We are hanging at the pool today. Romperoo told me she is thinking about smuggling in some margaritas for the big people at the pool. Oh, lucky them!
Before the heat and humidity attack us today, we headed over to Highbanks Metro Park for an early morning hike. Romperoo wanted to show me more Native American earthworks and also had a surprise for me, but wasn't going to tell.
The park is huge (1, 159 acres) and incredibly beautiful. There are ancient trees, deep ravines and meadows and you can even play in the shallow areas of the Olentangy River.
We trekked all over the park and stopped to visit two earthworks in the park. Overgrown with vegetation (and having very cloudy skies), the first earthworks that we saw was a little hard to see. The Highbanks Park Earthworks consist of a C-shaped embankment that encloses a tall bluff overlooking the Olentangy River in Delaware County, Ohio. The earthen walls are about 3 feet high and are broken by three openings, or gateways. There is a ditch on the exterior of the wall that originally was 3 feet deep, indicating the ditch was the source of the earth that formed the wall. This embankment and ditch may have served as a defensive wall for a Late Woodland (600 A.D. to 1200 A.D.) or Late Prehistoric (900 A.D. to 1650 A.D.) village of prehistoric Native American people. I was happy to see how this sacred area was being respected by people today.
Try as she might, Romperoo's camera could not take a good picture, so she has added some links to show you what we saw:
http://www.safetgallery.com/MoundPix/MoundFrameset.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highbank_Park_Works
We continued to walk on the trail and observed two deer feasting on some acorns that fell a little early from an oak tree. Romperoo told me that once she saw a litter of fox kits playing in the forest.
Down a slight slope on the path, we came to an observation deck balancing on poles overlooking the Olentangy River. I could hear the hawks screeching overhead and looked up to admire them. Guess what? Those weren't hawks! It was a Bald Eagle! Not too far from the observation deck a pair of eagles had built a nest early this spring (Romperoo saw it before the trees leafed out and reported it was massive). The wingspan on these great birds is impressive. They are so majestic to watch as the fly.
It was hard to leave the area, but we had one more sacred spot to visit. This small mound, known as the Adena Mound, is only a few feet high and about 45 feet in diameter, but was much reduced by plowing when the park was still farmland. Most archeologists believe that because of this mound’s location and general appearance it seems typical of the Adena type of earthwork.
http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=1287&nm=Adena-Culture
We also went to the Children's Fountain in the Battelle Riverfront Park. Would you believe that it was under repair? We still got to play on the fantastic bronze sculptures that tell the story of The Pickaweeke and his hound.
Here's the story: The hound drinks from the fountain and is turned to bronze. Pickaweeke goes on an adventure, talking to different animals and mythical beings, trying to help his hound.
The Unicorn sits next to the fountain. Pickaweeke needed to gain the Unicorn's power as part of helping his hound. The unicorn thought he knew everything. Pickaweeke noticed that the Unicorn's horn was very powerful. Pickaweeke pulled out some gum, and found the Unicorn's weakness was taste. He offer the gum to the Unicorn, and the Unicorn started chewing it without question as he knew everything. This caused the Unicorn's mouth to get stuck shut. Pickaweeke offered to help and grabbed the Unicorn's horn to pry its mouth open. As Pickaweeke pulled, he pulled the power out of the Unicorn's horn.
It's my last day here in Columbus - and a hot one. Before the sun got too high, I went out to her gardens one last time. The squash were growing well and the black-eyed susans had come into full bloom.
(Note: None of the pictures are mine, they were taken by her host, Romperoo, and most of the text was also written by the host family)
I felt a little awkward around the other girls. But I liked Laura.
(This is Laura)
The house I stayed in
I got to go to the Anthony Thomas candy store!
http://www.anthony-thomas.com/
This is called a Buckeye, like the state nut of Ohio. Romperoo explained that Buckeyes are a nut from the official state tree. The nuts have a hard brown casing around them which cracks open and looks like the eye of a deer (buck eye). While you can't eat those nuts, you CAN eat the buckeye candies! They are chocolate coated peanut butter tidbits that are delicious!
This giant version weighs 235 pounds and costs $3500!
How to make a Buckeye (I am going to do this!)
http://candy.about.com/od/fruitnutcandy/r/buckeyes.htm
Jeffers Mound (as it is known today) is prehistoric mound is all that remains of a much larger complex of earthworks that once occupied this site, a dramatic 60-foot bluff overlooking the Olentangy River. The earthworks are believed to have been built by the Hopewell people between 100 BC and AD 400, although archeologists have found signs of human habitation at this site dating back to 8,000 BC.
There were once an estimated 10,000 American Indian mounds and earthworks in the central Ohio Valley. Today, about 1,000 of these ancient landmarks have survived through efforts of private landowners, local, state and federal agencies and conservation groups. Of those sites, only about 73 are open to the general public or visible from public places.
We walked around the mound and tried to find remnants of the remaining earthworks. We all imagined what it would have been like so long ago, before farmers tore up the land and before cars went whizzing by
http://www.worthington.org/about/jeffersmound.cfm
Romperoo has headed out for the day for a girl's scrapbooking getaway with her friends. But before she left, she told us that she was going to come back tonight because... we are going to a Columbus Crew MLS soccer game tonight! I am so excited. I wish I had a vuvuzela!
Wow! That Crew game was so exciting! They won 2-0 and secured the lead in the league. Romperoo's DD had to fill me in on all the details because I had to sit in the car and listen. Bad storms were supposed to come in that night and I did not want to get my freshly braided hair messed up!
This morning, Mr. Romperoo also took us to the Columbus Zoo (but forgot the camera!) to walk through the North American and Polar exhibit. The bison was HUGE!
http://www.thecrew.com/
I still felt awkward and out of place
But I got cheered up when we went to the North Market
We piled in the car and headed downtown today. First we had a stop at the Santa Maria on the Scioto (say "sigh-oh-toe" or "sigh-oh-tuh") River. The ship is a life-size replica and the most accurate replica of the original boat. We could not imagine crossing an ocean with huge waves in this 98' vessel!
http://www.thesantamariaexperiment.iwarp.com/
It is so ridiculously hot and muggy. We are hanging at the pool today. Romperoo told me she is thinking about smuggling in some margaritas for the big people at the pool. Oh, lucky them!
Before the heat and humidity attack us today, we headed over to Highbanks Metro Park for an early morning hike. Romperoo wanted to show me more Native American earthworks and also had a surprise for me, but wasn't going to tell.
The park is huge (1, 159 acres) and incredibly beautiful. There are ancient trees, deep ravines and meadows and you can even play in the shallow areas of the Olentangy River.
We trekked all over the park and stopped to visit two earthworks in the park. Overgrown with vegetation (and having very cloudy skies), the first earthworks that we saw was a little hard to see. The Highbanks Park Earthworks consist of a C-shaped embankment that encloses a tall bluff overlooking the Olentangy River in Delaware County, Ohio. The earthen walls are about 3 feet high and are broken by three openings, or gateways. There is a ditch on the exterior of the wall that originally was 3 feet deep, indicating the ditch was the source of the earth that formed the wall. This embankment and ditch may have served as a defensive wall for a Late Woodland (600 A.D. to 1200 A.D.) or Late Prehistoric (900 A.D. to 1650 A.D.) village of prehistoric Native American people. I was happy to see how this sacred area was being respected by people today.
Try as she might, Romperoo's camera could not take a good picture, so she has added some links to show you what we saw:
http://www.safetgallery.com/MoundPix/MoundFrameset.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highbank_Park_Works
We continued to walk on the trail and observed two deer feasting on some acorns that fell a little early from an oak tree. Romperoo told me that once she saw a litter of fox kits playing in the forest.
Down a slight slope on the path, we came to an observation deck balancing on poles overlooking the Olentangy River. I could hear the hawks screeching overhead and looked up to admire them. Guess what? Those weren't hawks! It was a Bald Eagle! Not too far from the observation deck a pair of eagles had built a nest early this spring (Romperoo saw it before the trees leafed out and reported it was massive). The wingspan on these great birds is impressive. They are so majestic to watch as the fly.
It was hard to leave the area, but we had one more sacred spot to visit. This small mound, known as the Adena Mound, is only a few feet high and about 45 feet in diameter, but was much reduced by plowing when the park was still farmland. Most archeologists believe that because of this mound’s location and general appearance it seems typical of the Adena type of earthwork.
http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=1287&nm=Adena-Culture
We also went to the Children's Fountain in the Battelle Riverfront Park. Would you believe that it was under repair? We still got to play on the fantastic bronze sculptures that tell the story of The Pickaweeke and his hound.
Here's the story: The hound drinks from the fountain and is turned to bronze. Pickaweeke goes on an adventure, talking to different animals and mythical beings, trying to help his hound.
The Unicorn sits next to the fountain. Pickaweeke needed to gain the Unicorn's power as part of helping his hound. The unicorn thought he knew everything. Pickaweeke noticed that the Unicorn's horn was very powerful. Pickaweeke pulled out some gum, and found the Unicorn's weakness was taste. He offer the gum to the Unicorn, and the Unicorn started chewing it without question as he knew everything. This caused the Unicorn's mouth to get stuck shut. Pickaweeke offered to help and grabbed the Unicorn's horn to pry its mouth open. As Pickaweeke pulled, he pulled the power out of the Unicorn's horn.
It's my last day here in Columbus - and a hot one. Before the sun got too high, I went out to her gardens one last time. The squash were growing well and the black-eyed susans had come into full bloom.
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