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Remote worker: Renting for 3 Months?

4 points by SoftwareForAll ↗ HN
I'm moving to Texas, and it would be great to rent a place for 3 months to see if I like it before signing a lease. How can I find a place for 3 months? How can I make sure the place is good coming from another state (doesn't have bed bugs, the AC is good, etc)

10 comments

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sigmaprimus
Craigslist is a good resource

Looks like lots available in DFW area if thats where you're headed.

https://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/sub/d/dallas-from-40-nt-21...

SoftwareForAll
Thanks! How can I make sure the WiFi is fast, doesn't have bed bugs, the AC is good?
sigmaprimus
Well I guess you could ask the landlord? I think you might want to look into a rental agency.

Bed bugs is a tricky one, maybe look into some traps, toss the sheets when you get into the room and look for blood spots(I'm sure there are travel blogs with more advice on this).

Wifi is probably decent most places, Texas is a populous state so there has been quite a lot of investment in connectivity.

As far as AC goes, Texas is warm but I was there in May a couple years back and needed to put on a sweater so I wouldn't make that a priority considering summer is almost over.

You could always get a hotel for the first week, then view a few places once you get to your town, this will allow you to check out the neighborhoods and find one that fits your lifestyle.

If you're moving to the DFW, they have a really good transit system with rail connecting the three major cities. I believe it was called DART or Dallas Area Rapid Transit.

Good luck!

brudgers
Texas is a big place. It varies a lot between El Paso and Nacogdoches in one direction and Presido and Amarillo in the other. Booking a hotel for a week or so would allow time to see options in person.
thiago_fm
Aribnb, talk to the landlord and try to get a deal.
yellow_lead
No big advice for bed bugs or AC besides visiting (or hire someone to visit). For the 3 months portion, if you're looking near a college town, you could sublease from someone (search craigslist or local college Facebook groups)
dyeje
AirBnB (message them ahead of time, should be able to work out a special rate), long term stay hotels (e.g. Extended Stay America), or Craigslist.
PaulWaldman
Extended stay hotels. Here is a comprehensive list of brands to check out. [1]

The standard hotel taxes sometimes drop off after 30 days. This depends on the local municipality though. You can also generally get a better rate by calling.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Extended_stay_hotel_c...

ohyeshedid
I can't say what the laws are in Texas, but in several tourist spots anything less than 7 months is considered a vacation rental and is usually more expensive, due to tourism tax. It had never occurred to me that could apply to extended stays in hotels.
zb1plus
I'm in a similar situation and I found corporate housing to be a good option, they typically are fully furnished and have good wifi and other amenities necessary for remote work. A lot of them are very flexible these days given the lack of corporate travel.