I did mention the pigeon, didn't I?

Yesterday was a pretty disappointing day.

We had made the drive to San Francisco to look at two rental properties - one in the frightfully quiet West of Twin Peaks area, the other, near Hugo and Irving.

Our first appointment -- the West of Twin Peaks property -- fell through when the owner decided not to show up.

This was probably for the best since my initial reaction when seeing the house was:

"This reminds me of Bela Lugosi's house in Plan 9 from Outer Space."

After waiting around for a half an hour, we headed to our next appointment where we encountered:

1. The constant barking of a rottweiler-sized dog in the shared unit.

2. A very scary black pigeon living in one of the rooms -- which, at first sight looked very much like a bat, hence my scream "Oh, my God, there's a bat living up there."

3. A kitchen literally the size of my arm-span, if that wide.

4. Did I mention the pigeon?

And yes, I'm usually very picky. But, yesterday morning -- before we left to go the The City -- I made sure to keep an open mind.

So now, I'm completely bummed since I see the process of finding somewhere to live in San Francisco to be a nightmarish process.

We don't need to be in the heart of the city -- we're very open to living in an isolated part -- say, Outer Sunset or, West of Twin Peaks.

We just want something that feels clean and safe.

Oh, and a garage, hardwood floors, washer/dryer and a location close to some sort of public transit.

Yeah, I know -- good luck. Damn us spoiled suburban kids with our champagne wishes and caviar dreams.

Or, as I like to say -- champagne tastes on a beer budget.

But not having to live with a pigeon doesn't seem to be too much to ask

Side Note: My day was somewhat brightened by the aquisition of State Quarter #15 -- Kentucky.

Comments

[Drew Bell]

I sympathize. After two weeks of apartment-searching in New York, I wondered if it was unreasonable to ask for an apartment building whose hallways didn't smell like urine. One "one-bedroom" I toured was a studio, about the size of my parents' kitchen, with French doors separating one third of the room. For $1200/month. In the end, though, we blew our savings paying a broker to find us an okay place. Good luck.

[Dinah]

Lane & Courtney used RentTech to find their place and it's positively dreamy.

Don't despair! You (and I, I hope) will find something ideal.

[Greg]

Keep trying, you're chapagne is there it just takes a little while to find it. And make sure you get the hardwood floors. I bought a condo last year with really bad carpet and now all my wife and I want is a really cool hardwood floor.

[Paul]

Hardwood floors do come recommended. They're easy to care for, and you can easily use a throw rug to change the decor of a room.

FWIW the majority of the big online rental sites are worthless. Something like craigslist might be better for finding things.

[ricky]

Ok this apartment searching situation is something I know about. I've lived in SF for 1.6 years and lived in 4 apartments. Finally, after much suffering, I found I place i adore. The problem is that finding one takes dedication. On top of everything the Landlords feel that they have a right to charge crazy rent. They are in denial about what is happening in SF as far as people leaving in droves. I looked at a gorgeous apartment in Pacific Heights, I tried to bring the price down a bit. The lanlord told me he was not desperate... I drive by yersterday and there are two apartments empty. He might be desperate now. YOU HAVE TO BE RUTHLESS.

Please check West Portal. It is gorgeous. It feels like an entirely different world but still in SF. http://www.outsidelands.org/wp_intro.html

ricky

[Cindy]

I can heartily recommend the Richmond (psst.. it's not as foggy as everyone claims) - big apartments for reasonable prices, and lots of frequently-running bus lines. The Sunset is lovely, but it's possible to live a looong ways from any public transit. Both neighborhoods are your best bet in the city for getting garage, washer/dryer, yard, and pets OK without spending a fortune.

Also, use Craig's List - you can print out ads from comparable apartments and use them to bargain down landlords -- "see, these other apartments are renting for $200 lower, now let's talk".

[megan]

On our first apartment hunt (in the midst of '00) we used MetroRent, but the best places we saw we found through Craig's List. We're on the verge of serious hunting again. Sigh, I feel your pain!

[TC]

I envy you, actually. The last time I was in San Francisco visiting a friend who has since joined the dot-com exodus, I walked around the Richmond and the Sunset for a couple of days. I imagined living there, within walking distance of parks and the ocean, a bus or muni ride from downtown. It sounds lovely, really. Don't give up. You'll find your dreamhouse if you just keep at it.

[kyle]

Good Luck! It took about four weeks before we found a great apartment. Landlords are greedy bastards too! They are in denial about the number of vacancies in the city. You will find the apartment of your dreams though. It just takes time. There are so many people who have left the city. The apartment we are in now went down $500.

[Daniel Talsky]

At least you can afford beer, eh?

[Jeff]

When you have high design (not to mention sanitation) standards, it's even harder to picture yourself in the dreck you come upon on your search. This goes for house as well as apartment hunting.

The first day is the worst. It's a shock what people have done to their places. But, I would agree with the rest. Use your God-given talents to schmooze the landlord if need be.

I remember the last place I rented in L.A. Just like you, all I was seeing were pits. When suddenly I hit pay dirt. It was a side-by-side duplex for the 20s, right near Melrose and La Brea. Prime. Bathroom with maroon and black tile with sunlight...

The landlords were living in the other unit. I had a fever but when the landlady said that her husband was out for a bit and could I come back shortly, I asked if I could wait.

I spied her son's bar mitzvah photos on the mantel. I said to her that they looked just like my bar mitzvah photos (just for the record, I did have bar mitzvah photos). I wanted that place and I was going to use whatever I had in my cultural bank account to get that place.

He finally came home, I turned up the Jewish heat as best as I could and got the place!

Persevere! You'll know the place you want when you see it. Then don't hold back any talent you have for connecting with the owner! Go fo it.

[mike]

Craig's List seems to run a bit high on the rentals. I've had luck wih RentTech, but SF is ablaze in rent signs right now.
I recommend looking in GlenPark, on the west side. It's pretty nice. There's a Bart stop, an excellent tacqueria and a canyon to walk around in. It's a little outta the way but with Bart there, it's 5 minutes from downtown. Also bikable, if that interests you. Try it out.

Now the Sunset; that might as well be in Utah.

[bob]

Let me refer you to this chestnut.

[rebecca]

You have my sympathy and my empathy! I have lived in only 3 apartments in San Francisco in about 8 years, and I count myself lucky.

The first flat I found via a friend's work intranet posting, and spent the next year of my life living with one very nice guy and one absolutely psycho secretary who spent all her bill money on a dating service. Financially speaking, it probably wasn't the soundest investment, but it did provide a highly entertaining nightly parade of would-be-suitors for myself and any visitors to howl over after they left for their first date dinner.

The second flat I found after 2 solid months of searching - in hindsight, the two most depressing months I spent in SF, period. I signed with Metro Rents, a fine service which faxed stacks of leads
to my office every morning (this was way pre-Craigslist). I was searching for myself and a friend who lived in Davis and was in the process of graduating (read: no job yet) and moving into town. I had to do all the footwork, and my whole life seemingly dissapeared as every waking moment was spent trying to work in walk-throughs on my lunchbreak and drive-bys after work. I finally did find a suitable wreck of a 3-bedroom on a seemingly great little street in the Mission for dirt cheap.

My last - and current - flat I consider requital for previous pains and sufferings during the house-hunting process. After several changes of house and moving in with SO's and such, my previous Mission flatmate ended up purchasing a lovely multi-unit Victorian - with a newly vacated flat in it! I did the unthinkable and moved into the best flat I have ever lived in, without a single day's hunting.

Chin up! It's a tedious, dehumanizing, demoralizing process - and eventually it *will* end and you'll find a good place. Believe it or not, the market is relatively depressed and you are looking during probably the best time in the last 4 or 5 years! You'll find something.

[Kristin]

Keep looking, Mena. You'll find the perfect place eventually. It's not worth it to settle. I've lived in 6 different places in the Bay area (one in SF, one in Sunnyvale and four in Mountain View), and the only one I didn't like was the one I rented in a hurry. The rest took forever to find, and I'm glad I took the trouble. Best of luck!!!

[Billy]

You could have used that pigeon to scare unsuspecting friends and relatives. Or you could just buy a bat.

[heather]

mena, i [heart] renttech. it's definitely worth the $ investment. there's tons of stuff in cole valley at the moment. i see many for rent signs when i walk the pups.

[Mena]

Thanks all for the optimism and the tips. Wesubscribed to MetroRent before I posted this entry so hopefully it will a good resource. I'm checking Craig's lists, the Chronicle and various other rental sites daily, as well.

The hardest part is living about 50 minutes away from the City -- we can't just drop by to check out a rental.

But I think we know more what we want -- We really like the West Portal / Sunset area. Ben and I actually worked in West Portal at our old job so we're familiar with the area.

No Outer Sunset, possibly Richmond and we're still not going to rule out the "busier" areas.

So, please keep us in mind if you see anything.

[scotty the body]

Mena: I just heard on the radio that San Francisco is the #1 "distressed" residential AND commercial rental market in the U.S. This means that there are a critical number of vacancies, and rents WILL TUMBLE. They have to, if free market economy works (and it does, for the most part).

[pdQueen]

A black pigeon ? eeeewww scary ...

P.S I like reading your journal too :0)

[Melanie]

Hey, there's a rental unit above mine in the heart of S.F.!! It's renting for $1750 a month and it's a great two bedroom flat, probably 1000 square feet or so. It's on the second floor and has a balcony out back. There's a back yard...no garage....the block is gorgeous. There's a bed and breakfast on the corner. Alamo Square Park is two blocks away....email me back if you're interested in finding out more about it....