Nothing can bring on culture shock quite like rent prices. Unless you’re moving from California or New York, you’ll probably notice that to rent a few hundred square feet of cozy space for yourself and your family, you’ll have to cut back on a few non essentials ("sorry little Suzie, but you’re spinal operation will have to wait until daddy finishes law school”), and to buy a house you can do nothing less than sell a kidney or you’re first born. Honestly, the rent prices are so much higher that, for the same amount of money as you would pay in the west, you have to give up either quality or quantity. My husband and I decided to give up a little of both as we live in a little studio apartment quite a ways from where our friends live. When we were looking for a place to live over the internet from Chris’ parents’ spacious and comfortable house on their sectional couch in front of the big screen TV, we realized that we had better soak it up now, because it would be a long time before we could afford a nice place of our own. And it’s funny how, after being here for two years, we now believe that we’re getting a good deal!
Of course there are things you can do to get the best deal possible. Ward websites, of course, are a great resource. Chris and I found our place through his cousin’s ward. Craig’s List is also an interesting place to look, for there’s always a deal to be found there if you look at the right time. Other people we know had more luck moving into a place with a short lease, looking for a better place, and moving when the lease expired. Others have found that there are places for low income families that require you to put your name on a list and wait until a place opens up, but the rent is much cheaper. Are there any more suggestions or stories of good deal apartments out there?
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we came up in one weekend and had to find a place to live asap, so we were desperate. we drove around all the places we thought we could live and called the numbers on the "for rent" signs. after meeting one landlord, seeing the place and thinking it looked great, we asked him if we could pay $150 less per month in exchange for him not re-painting. he took us up on the deal and since we couldn't find anything else with an equal commute time that matched the price, we did it. perhaps we could have found something if we had had more time, but my point is, the quoted rental price given is sometimes flexible, especially when renting from a private owner.
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