# Washington DC accomodation



## XavierFr86 (Nov 1, 2015)

Hi,

I'm French, currently living in Paris, and I've signed for a Job in Washington DC. Will be moving there with my wife beginning of next year !

My plan is to rent a 1 month place from France and then look for a permanent place when will be onsite.
As we don't know how long we'll stay on DC, most probably at least 2-3 years, I think we'll rent a furnished appartment.

I'm starting to keep an eye on the appartment list, but I have general questions regarding the rent.

Are furnished appartment common in the US ? Is this a good deal or you'll advise to rent an empty appt and buy all the stuff ?
How much does this add to the bill ?
How long is the lease ? 
Any special terms with a furnished appartment, like a different deposit ?


Thanks for all this questions !


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## Thorium (Oct 30, 2015)

The rental scene in Washington, DC is quite pricey. It ranges somewhere around the neighborhood of $1500-2000 easily per month. And that is for 1-2 bedroom homes. Bigger homes would cost more. Now, unless you really have to, I'd say it is best to veer off from Georgetown and Mount Vernon Square where it is most expensive, so depending on where you would be working, it is advisable to look elsewhere.

For furnished homes, I think you can get away with not having to pay extra in exchange to having a good long term lease with the landlord. Most landlords are looking for consistent and on time tenants who do not give them headaches with maintenance and damage on the property.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Job location and budget will drive your search. Google maps for public transportation and extended stay hotels which is the least expensive way to spend the first weeks in DC.


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## daygl0 (Aug 12, 2015)

Renting in the US is not like in France. There is typically no difference in contract between furnished and unfurnished apartments. Maybe someone will want a slightly higher deposit, but not necessarily. Furnished is much less common in the US than it is in France. Standard leases are 1 year and then renewed every year (when you resign depends on the market and the landlord) regardless of whether it is furnished or unfurnished.

As mentioned above, you are best of searching in your price range and area and then seeing what you can find.


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## XavierFr86 (Nov 1, 2015)

Hi,

Thanks everybody for your answers !

Yes I forgot mentionning about the budget and location 

On the budget, there a common rule in France which says a rent budget should not be more than a 1/3 of the net income of the family.
I guess it's almost the same in the US ?

Location, as it's a consultancy job, I may have to work in various place around Washington DC so I'm looking to be in the center, close to a metro station.
Like everyobdy I guess 
The more convenient area I found is Foggy Bottom, but it seems to be also one of the most expensive.

You mentionned extended stay hotel for the 1st month, but nobody talked about airbnb or craig list. Is this because it's more expensive or less secure ?

Thanks,


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## Bellthorpe (Jun 23, 2013)

Hi Xavier,

You mention a 'rule' in France of one third of your budget. It's quite difficult in France, as a landlord will want to see payslips, bank details and so on. There's no 'rule' as such in the US, but it's prudent not to over-extend your payments.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

:spit:g


Bellthorpe said:


> Hi Xavier,
> 
> You mention a 'rule' in France of one third of your budget. It's quite difficult in France, as a landlord will want to see payslips, bank details and so on. There's no 'rule' as such in the US, but it's prudent not to over-extend your payments.


And in the US it is credit check, verification of employment and I have seen up to three months rent as deposit.


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## Bellthorpe (Jun 23, 2013)

I don't doubt you, but when we had our apartment in DC rented out we asked for none of those things. In any case, I don't know how I would do a credit check on someone else . . .


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Bellthorpe said:


> I don't doubt you, but when we had our apartment in DC rented out we asked for none of those things. In any case, I don't know how I would do a credit check on someone else . . .


Unfortunately for OP "had" does not provide a roof over his head

But with little to no information given we can reinvent the wheel.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

As you can see, there is no hard and fast "rule" in the States about rent. (Though the no more than 1/3 your income is still a good "rule of thumb" for budgeting purposes. Ever harder, however, to stick to.)

As twostep notes, in the US it all comes down to your "credit rating" - which you won't actually have until you've been living and working in the US for a year or two. In the meantime, you may be asked to provide additional deposit money up front. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## StellaJefferson (Sep 8, 2015)

XavierFr86 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I'm French, currently living in Paris, and I've signed for a Job in Washington DC. Will be moving there with my wife beginning of next year !
> 
> ...


Hello, 
Furnished apartments are getting more common in the US with the passing time. 

ACCORDING TO THE 2013 CORPORATE HOUSING ANNUAL REPORT
1 Bedroom Corporate Housing property = $99.78 per night

2 Bedroom Corporate Housing property = $117.52 per night

3 Bedroom Corporate Housing property = $135.40 per night

I JUST RAN A GOOGLE SEARCH FOR DOWNTOWN (DENVER) HOTELS AND THIS IS WHAT I GOT:
$113 per night = 3 Star, Embassy Suites

$160 per night = 4 Star, Oxford Hotel

$325 pre night = 5 Star, Four Seasons


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## StellaJefferson (Sep 8, 2015)

You can take a look at the stats by referring to the post below: 

https://www.corporatehousingbyowner.com/blog/2014/03/corporate-housing-travel-roi/


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## XavierFr86 (Nov 1, 2015)

Thanks for stats and the comments,

Yes I've read about the lack of credit history. It seems I'll need to pay an extra deposit, which however I may claim for refund after few months.


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## daygl0 (Aug 12, 2015)

Just FYI, "corporate" furnished apartments operate on a slightly different payscale than regular apartments (unfurnished and furnished) and usually end up being closer to airbnb or long-stay hotel rates. They're not really directly comparable to the type of housing you're looking for (like a regular lease), but would be more like your first month in a temporary place. 

The cheapest option for those temporary arrangements is craigslist, under "temporary" or "sublet" situations. Since it's more like leboncoin.fr, your mileage may vary and you should be careful about scams. That being said, I've found most of my housing on craigslist.com and haven't had too many issues. Airbnb has a bit more security because the people who offer places want to be rated highly and continue to rent their place (craigslist has more offres exceptionelles...and weirdos). An alternative to airbnb is vrbo.com

Happy hunting!


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