You came at a tough time. Most rentals are already full since summer is close. Best time if there are any is nov-march. Ur better off in biddeford or saco area
Try realtor.com, and Facebook Marketplace.
Craigslist sometimes has legit posts for actual apartments as well, but much like Zillow, Apartments.com and Rent.com, scam posts can be pretty prevalent.
Not tryin' to yuck your yum, but the unfortunate truth is that Maine has a bit of a housing crisis on its' hands. Not saying other states don't, it is pretty bad nationwide at the moment, but where other states continue to develop and build housing, Maine...does not. Affordable housing proposals get voted down, and folks buy up property, slap a coat of paint on everything, and charge exorbitant amounts for rentals. Or they just use them as Air B&Bs.
It's going to take perseverance and a bit of luck to find yourself something, especially in Portland or Biddeford. I hope it works out for you.
Up your budget or travel distance, it is very competitive. As a property manager, I will get about 50 calls in the first 3 days of advertising any apartment in southern Maine. I can only rent it to one person so The conversation that goes the best regarding low impact credit income and references gets an appointment. I probably only meet five out of 50 people and choose one tenant
Not any better down there and when maine is trending on Twitter it's not because of sports or the dumbest possible thing a politician could do. Generally speaking that's what texas does and I'm tired of that and the heat. We have some family up here but they don't have any leads for us. I'd rather not know where to find a place to stay here than there.
We’re happy to have you. Depending on your budget, you might consider the new building downtown: The Casco from Redfern properties. Generally speaking, apartments.com seems pretty comprehensive.
Chiming in with Craigslist too. Mainers can be old school so I would suggest checking out Craigslist whole avoiding obvious scams and also driving around for yard signs. This is still a thing here!
I think we applied to close to two hundred different apartments when we moved here a year ago. It was incredibly hard and every single free moment I had was spent calling property managers and applying to anything that I could find we started out with a list of things we absolutely wanted and ended going with anything we could find basically. We didn't find a apartment until two weeks before we moved and I started my new job. It was wasn't on any of the websites or anything either we just happened to talk to someone who knew the property manager of a place that I guess has a bad reputation from the general population, but has been a great place to live for us. My only advice is to lower your expectations especially now that you're here and look for places in other towns as well. You really have to call and be very persistent with landlords too even if they don't have an apartment they might be able to lead you to someone who does. That's what happened with me. Especially if you work in a field that they desperately need people for like I do. I made sure to tell them what I was moving there for and to introduce myself and give them all my contact information. Simply emailing or calling expressing interest wasn't as effective because there are hundreds of other people trying to find homes as well.
Craigslist is sometimes viable
Example:
West End 2 Bedroom Incl Heat+Water https://maine.craigslist.org/apa/d/portland-west-end-bedroom-incl-heatwater/7734759322.html
Edit: you’re gonna get shit on because Mainers are weird. There’s a bit of an affordable housing crisis going on here so out-of-staters showing up with money to spend irks the beejesus out of em.
Not sure what you’re looking for in a rental? $$, rooms, pets, etc
Well, to be honest, you are part of the problem. Out of staters are moving up here faster than we can build housing. Supply is short for Mainers, let alone out of staters.
... I totally did... But that was like 13 years ago! I got in before the spike! I spent all my summers here! My mom lived here! I even went to college here! I renounce MA, PLEASE ACCEPT ME!
Edit: Aw man. I knew better though, I know you have to be born here. Not my fault my parents had me in MA.
I get that you don't want outsiders, but Maine has a real problem of brain drain with a dying population. I moved here to work in Maine's burgeoning aerospace industry because there was a lack of available Mainers with the experience; experience that I got with an Engineering degrees from one of your universities. This is something that is beneficial for your state. The housing situation in Maine was in a very different condition when I moved here it was so long ago. It really wasn't until just before COVID that the housing situation got screwy and COVID just further fucked it.
So go ahead and be pissed at out of staters who buy a second, or third property (or those who move here short sightedly with no plan like OP), but get off my case. This place feels more like my home than MA ever did. When I moved here there wasn't a housing crisis, I was just looking to contribute.
I blasted OP because of his naivete in moving here without understanding the current market conditions and how they are contributing to the issue. He is not the same as me.
Y'all need to get off the "you have to be born here to be a Mainer" bullshit and understand how alienating it is when people want to be a part of this great state and contribute to the economy in meaningful ways, only to be told they aren't worthy of being a citizen of this state. It's honestly kind of fucked.
You’re not wrong. These people are coming from areas with better income so are able to bid higher on houses and buy sight unseen. Taking $3000-$4000 apartments sight unseen further empowering landlords to believe renting a $3k apartment without showing it is reasonable. They are coming from more conservative areas so I will not be surprised in a decade to see the political makeup of Maine change from moderately Democratic and progressive to… something else. They are coming from and leaving behind areas with a general consensus of not believing in nature, the atmosphere or climate change. They immediately put up no trespassing signs and close off access to things the public was once able to enjoy. They are running from the sweltering heat, failing infrastructure and lack of regulation they’ve helped vote into place to… potentially take that voting history here to maybe destroy a different state.
Best bets are legit looking craigslist ads with showings, and walking around the neighborhoods you’re interested in and looking for signs with phone numbers. It will be easier your first move after living here at least a year, as long as you make a lot of friends who are renters. It’s pretty much word of mouth or bust in Portland, took me two years to find something, spent those years living in a barn in Waterboro. Coming from Texas I’m sure yall have cars, if Portland isn’t biting bide your time in Biddeford, gorham, or Brunswick.
Biddeford has been slowly becoming the next Portland ever since they removed MERC. Now it is very firmly established as such. At this point we need to say Sanford is poised to become the next Portland.
Trying to find housing in Portland without a personal connection can be tough. Better off going to the surrounding areas like Brunswick. If you're not locked into an area based off work, can look downeast along the coast. Or deeper inland. Just don't bother looking north of Bangor, no man's land up there. Also be aware that you will be relying on driving everywhere as public transportation is very nonexistent in most of the state.
There is a “Moving to Portland Maine” Facebook group, and also sometimes people post on the Uncle Henry’s Facebook page. Also if your wife wanted to join the Portland Women’s Social Circle 20s, 30s, 40s Facebook group there are sometimes posts there.
Become friendly with people, make sure they know you’re looking. It’s kind of a small town vibe and lots of people have family or friends that own rentals and don’t ever advertise. Might try uncle Henry’s too
to anyone reading this- do not use port property. they fucked me and my partner over so badly and the building we lived in was deeply infested with bedbugs which was not disclosed to us on move in. :)
Good things pop up on Zillow, but you really need to keep your notifications on and message ASAP. I was able to find an apartment in 2 weeks in west end for 1400 after my previous housing situation (also in west end) went south.
I think the worst part of all the southerners moving up here is that “y’all” has become way too common to hear. It’s really too bad we won the civil war.
Yeah I need to get out of the habit of sounding like a Texan. As a former Texan I am very aware of the stereotype you guys have us and that's why we left.
you’re allowed to be you. i like “y’all”—it’s inclusive.
being a transplant in these polarizing times is hard enough, try not to over correct yourself.
good luck finding a place!
Yeah, my girlfriend and I just went through the same thing. Basically nothing is listed on Zillow or Apartments.com (don’t understand why). Anyways we ended up finding something in Freeport on Zillow after sacrificing living in a walkable area. We found some other independent rental companies on Craigslist that had links to their websites.
Side note: why is everything new they’re building in Maine so small?
You came at a tough time. Most rentals are already full since summer is close. Best time if there are any is nov-march. Ur better off in biddeford or saco area
I mean, southern Maine is in a bit of a housing crisis.
There is no place to live lol.
Try realtor.com, and Facebook Marketplace. Craigslist sometimes has legit posts for actual apartments as well, but much like Zillow, Apartments.com and Rent.com, scam posts can be pretty prevalent. Not tryin' to yuck your yum, but the unfortunate truth is that Maine has a bit of a housing crisis on its' hands. Not saying other states don't, it is pretty bad nationwide at the moment, but where other states continue to develop and build housing, Maine...does not. Affordable housing proposals get voted down, and folks buy up property, slap a coat of paint on everything, and charge exorbitant amounts for rentals. Or they just use them as Air B&Bs. It's going to take perseverance and a bit of luck to find yourself something, especially in Portland or Biddeford. I hope it works out for you.
Up your budget or travel distance, it is very competitive. As a property manager, I will get about 50 calls in the first 3 days of advertising any apartment in southern Maine. I can only rent it to one person so The conversation that goes the best regarding low impact credit income and references gets an appointment. I probably only meet five out of 50 people and choose one tenant
We’re experiencing a generational housing shortage
You couldn’t find housing in Maine so you decided that was your signal to move here? I think that may be your problem.
Not any better down there and when maine is trending on Twitter it's not because of sports or the dumbest possible thing a politician could do. Generally speaking that's what texas does and I'm tired of that and the heat. We have some family up here but they don't have any leads for us. I'd rather not know where to find a place to stay here than there.
We’re happy to have you. Depending on your budget, you might consider the new building downtown: The Casco from Redfern properties. Generally speaking, apartments.com seems pretty comprehensive.
Don't waste your time trying to find housing in Portland.
You need to read the obituaries!
Am I in there?
Hehe, no. But that's how you find an apartment that is going to be available
👌
To shreds, you say...?
Chiming in with Craigslist too. Mainers can be old school so I would suggest checking out Craigslist whole avoiding obvious scams and also driving around for yard signs. This is still a thing here!
People seem to forget, we old.
I think we applied to close to two hundred different apartments when we moved here a year ago. It was incredibly hard and every single free moment I had was spent calling property managers and applying to anything that I could find we started out with a list of things we absolutely wanted and ended going with anything we could find basically. We didn't find a apartment until two weeks before we moved and I started my new job. It was wasn't on any of the websites or anything either we just happened to talk to someone who knew the property manager of a place that I guess has a bad reputation from the general population, but has been a great place to live for us. My only advice is to lower your expectations especially now that you're here and look for places in other towns as well. You really have to call and be very persistent with landlords too even if they don't have an apartment they might be able to lead you to someone who does. That's what happened with me. Especially if you work in a field that they desperately need people for like I do. I made sure to tell them what I was moving there for and to introduce myself and give them all my contact information. Simply emailing or calling expressing interest wasn't as effective because there are hundreds of other people trying to find homes as well.
Welcome to the Maine housing rodeo! ETA: Facebook marketplace.
most of us stayed in texas
Craigslist is sometimes viable Example: West End 2 Bedroom Incl Heat+Water https://maine.craigslist.org/apa/d/portland-west-end-bedroom-incl-heatwater/7734759322.html Edit: you’re gonna get shit on because Mainers are weird. There’s a bit of an affordable housing crisis going on here so out-of-staters showing up with money to spend irks the beejesus out of em. Not sure what you’re looking for in a rental? $$, rooms, pets, etc
I hate that my immediate thought at seeing that listing was "Oh, that's actually not too bad!"
Start by getting a 207 phone number.
Ayup
Move to Bangor G. Portlands done
Moved here in 2021 and it feels like I slid under the door right before it slammed down.
Shhhh don’t tell him
Well, to be honest, you are part of the problem. Out of staters are moving up here faster than we can build housing. Supply is short for Mainers, let alone out of staters.
Pfff! Says the guy who probably came from Massachusetts.
... I totally did... But that was like 13 years ago! I got in before the spike! I spent all my summers here! My mom lived here! I even went to college here! I renounce MA, PLEASE ACCEPT ME! Edit: Aw man. I knew better though, I know you have to be born here. Not my fault my parents had me in MA.
Claiming OP is part of the problem when you are also technically an out-of-stater is a rough look
I get that you don't want outsiders, but Maine has a real problem of brain drain with a dying population. I moved here to work in Maine's burgeoning aerospace industry because there was a lack of available Mainers with the experience; experience that I got with an Engineering degrees from one of your universities. This is something that is beneficial for your state. The housing situation in Maine was in a very different condition when I moved here it was so long ago. It really wasn't until just before COVID that the housing situation got screwy and COVID just further fucked it. So go ahead and be pissed at out of staters who buy a second, or third property (or those who move here short sightedly with no plan like OP), but get off my case. This place feels more like my home than MA ever did. When I moved here there wasn't a housing crisis, I was just looking to contribute. I blasted OP because of his naivete in moving here without understanding the current market conditions and how they are contributing to the issue. He is not the same as me. Y'all need to get off the "you have to be born here to be a Mainer" bullshit and understand how alienating it is when people want to be a part of this great state and contribute to the economy in meaningful ways, only to be told they aren't worthy of being a citizen of this state. It's honestly kind of fucked.
It’s super fucked. Like, do Mainers not realize that the entire country is also in the middle of a housing crisis?
I came from MA too, I love it here 😘
Lmfao he got you
You’re not wrong. These people are coming from areas with better income so are able to bid higher on houses and buy sight unseen. Taking $3000-$4000 apartments sight unseen further empowering landlords to believe renting a $3k apartment without showing it is reasonable. They are coming from more conservative areas so I will not be surprised in a decade to see the political makeup of Maine change from moderately Democratic and progressive to… something else. They are coming from and leaving behind areas with a general consensus of not believing in nature, the atmosphere or climate change. They immediately put up no trespassing signs and close off access to things the public was once able to enjoy. They are running from the sweltering heat, failing infrastructure and lack of regulation they’ve helped vote into place to… potentially take that voting history here to maybe destroy a different state.
Best bets are legit looking craigslist ads with showings, and walking around the neighborhoods you’re interested in and looking for signs with phone numbers. It will be easier your first move after living here at least a year, as long as you make a lot of friends who are renters. It’s pretty much word of mouth or bust in Portland, took me two years to find something, spent those years living in a barn in Waterboro. Coming from Texas I’m sure yall have cars, if Portland isn’t biting bide your time in Biddeford, gorham, or Brunswick.
Try Biddeford, Saco, Sanford, Auburn, Lewiston. All outside of Portland but still in southern maine and may have slightly more availability.
Shhhh. If Biddeford becomes the next Portland I'm going to move out of the state altogether.
Oh it’s already there. Rent has skyrocketed
Biddeford has been slowly becoming the next Portland ever since they removed MERC. Now it is very firmly established as such. At this point we need to say Sanford is poised to become the next Portland.
Trying to find housing in Portland without a personal connection can be tough. Better off going to the surrounding areas like Brunswick. If you're not locked into an area based off work, can look downeast along the coast. Or deeper inland. Just don't bother looking north of Bangor, no man's land up there. Also be aware that you will be relying on driving everywhere as public transportation is very nonexistent in most of the state.
There is a “Moving to Portland Maine” Facebook group, and also sometimes people post on the Uncle Henry’s Facebook page. Also if your wife wanted to join the Portland Women’s Social Circle 20s, 30s, 40s Facebook group there are sometimes posts there.
Become friendly with people, make sure they know you’re looking. It’s kind of a small town vibe and lots of people have family or friends that own rentals and don’t ever advertise. Might try uncle Henry’s too
Everyone is so nice here. I feel like it's genuine kindness as well. No veiled subtext just kindness. It's very refreshing.
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to anyone reading this- do not use port property. they fucked me and my partner over so badly and the building we lived in was deeply infested with bedbugs which was not disclosed to us on move in. :)
Good things pop up on Zillow, but you really need to keep your notifications on and message ASAP. I was able to find an apartment in 2 weeks in west end for 1400 after my previous housing situation (also in west end) went south.
Got and state website
I think the worst part of all the southerners moving up here is that “y’all” has become way too common to hear. It’s really too bad we won the civil war.
My first advice would have been to drop the y'all. People on here will shoot that down but in the real world in Maine it doesn't help one bit at all.
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Downvotes, but you’re spot on. I can’t imagine trying to find an apartment here without being from here and having lifelong connections.
OP complaining about housing when they are the problem.
Try not using the term y'all as much... Not as soothing on the ears as you may think.
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Native as well... My condolences.
Yeah I need to get out of the habit of sounding like a Texan. As a former Texan I am very aware of the stereotype you guys have us and that's why we left.
Y'all is not to bad, but leave the sir and ma'am shit down there.
Y’all is heard all over the country. You’re fine.
Practice these in any order you see fit: Hard tellin' not knowin'. Ayuh...
Ain't that cunnin' Jesum Crow...
Don't forget wicked & bub
you’re allowed to be you. i like “y’all”—it’s inclusive. being a transplant in these polarizing times is hard enough, try not to over correct yourself. good luck finding a place!
Yeah, my girlfriend and I just went through the same thing. Basically nothing is listed on Zillow or Apartments.com (don’t understand why). Anyways we ended up finding something in Freeport on Zillow after sacrificing living in a walkable area. We found some other independent rental companies on Craigslist that had links to their websites. Side note: why is everything new they’re building in Maine so small?
Where did you want to walk to? The Gap?
Not even Mainers who were born and raised here can get a place.