Rental househunting in College Park/Greenbelt, MD - resources?

October 12, 2016 7:04 AM

New job in College Park in a month ... need to find a 4bdr (at least) house to rent for my family before then! Panic. Very little is available on Craigslist. Are there other/better options?

FTR, I will be staff at UMD CP. I am not yet in the system.

This housing will be for myself, spouse, and our 1yo (!). We're also hoping to have in-home child care (cannot possibly find daycare that fast anyway), so, we do need the room. Spouse and I both have decent jobs and the rental prices (at least as seen on Craigslist) are well within our range.

If it's not too much to ask (sigh) we would highly value being able to walk to Metro, either in CP or Greenbelt.

We're currently located several states away (I'm sure a skim of my history will show where) so I can't just bike through and look.

Would love any suggestions! Thank you.

posted by aperturescientist to Home & Garden (6 answers total)

Best answer: Zillow and Trulia regularly lists houses in Greenbelt. I would also look in the closer (and denser, residentially) areas around the West Hyattsville and Prince George's Plaza Metro stations. I've worked for the UM system for a decade and am a lifelong resident of the area - feel free to MeMail with questions.
posted by ryanshepard at 8:14 AM on October 12, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: When I was renting a house in the suburbs, I used a real estate agent rather than Craig's list or other online means.
posted by AugustWest at 9:14 AM on October 12, 2016

Best answer: UMD CP grad (note the username), and lived in the area as recently as 2000. NEVER had issues finding listings for houses in the area. Like AugustWest (say hi to Pearly Baker!) I used real estate agents, and Washington Post listings.

I am surprised that the university doesn't offer some listings/assistance.

FEAR THE TURTLE!
posted by terrapin at 11:17 AM on October 12, 2016

Best answer: Nthing use a real estate agent. You can also search via Zillow or Redfin (or any other online real estate search engine); just filter for rental homes.
posted by devinemissk at 11:22 AM on October 12, 2016

Best answer: I'd ask your university department for some pointers or if they can recommend a real estate contact, even if you're not formally in the system. This can't be the first time a new employee needs this kind of help.
posted by quince at 11:48 AM on October 12, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I'm a terp grad student. Contact your department and see if they have a mailing list. The nature of the area means people are often on sabbatical and looking to rent.
posted by codacorolla at 12:03 PM on October 12, 2016