Frequently Asked Questions
An apartment locator is a licensed real estate agent who gets paid a commission for finding and referring their clients to the apartment of their dreams. Some locators also work in residential real estate but most focus solely on leasing apartment complexes in the city they live in.
First and foremost, it’s FREE! As stated above, locators get paid by the apartment complexes for referring you. Now you might be thinking, why would they pay locators when countless people are looking for apartments every day and could find it on their own?
Apartment locators are professionals in their craft. They know the apartment complexes in their city like the back of their hand. They do hours and hours of research, touring apartments, finding great move-in specials, and more. Locators will listen to everything you want and need in an apartment from the style, price, area, and size. They also take into consideration your background and will match you with the best options for you. Apartment complexes know there are hundreds of places to choose from so most don’t mind paying locators for bringing new clients to their complex who probably would not have found it on their own.
One popular rule of thumb is the 30% rule, which says to spend around 30% of your gross income on rent. So if you earn $6,000 per month before taxes, you should spend about $1,800 per month on rent.
This is a solid guideline, but it’s not one-size-fits-all advice.
