We are excited to announce the five finalists competing for free rent for a year plus $10,000 in the 5^th annual Apartments.com Roommate of the Year contest. Help us chose the next Roommate of the Year! We are asking you to weigh in on who will be crowned the grand prize winner by casting your vote—now through July 7—for your favorite roomie in this national video competition. You can vote once every 24 hours at www.roommateoftheyear.com. The remaining four lovable roomies will take home runner-up prizes of $500 each.

Read More

The team at Apartments.com is so happy to have had an opportunity to recently provide a Los Angeles family living in a homeless shelter downtown with free rent for a year on the Jeff Probst Show. The Apartments.com GM and SVP, Dick Burke, appeared on the show to present Manessta with a check to help cover her rent for a year after hearing her story of how she and her three children— Xarria, Jermaine and Jakiya—became homeless soon after she lost her job.

Read More

Apartments.com SVP and GM, Dick Burke, was invited to appear on FoxNews.com to discuss the current state of the rental industry and the direction it’s headed. In addition to addressing the impact foreclosure in the housing market are having on rental units, Burke provides apartment hunters with tips on where they can stretch their rental dollar the furthest.

Read More

Do you have a pet-friendly policy at your apartment community? If not, you could be missing out on a growing breed of renters. In fact, there has been 32% increase in the number of renters who own pets today compared to last year, according to an Apartments.com national survey. These finding may be a sign of an improving U.S. economy as the struggling economy has played a strong role in the first decline in pet ownership since 1991, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.

While renting with pets may be on the rise, survey respondents said finding an apartment that allows pets was somewhat grueling, or often came with some hefty fees and deposits. More than 60% of renters surveyed said they faced some challenges in finding accommodations for them and their pet, and 63% said they were required to pay a pet deposit. Read More

If you begin to notice sudden behavior changes among you residents, such as frantically cleaning up their apartment, taking out the trash and cooking up a storm for their roommates, do not be alarmed. These are common side effects exhibited most often this time of year when we launch our Roommate of the Year contest.

Read More

Multifamily professionals understand the impact location has on the cost of rent. For example, a studio apartment in NYC is going to skew much higher in rent compared to the same sized apartment in Grand Rapids, MI. Knowing the significance location plays during the apartment search, the team at Apartments.com took a deeper look into how much rental prices varied from around the country, based on our website data. Looking, specifically, at what apartment shoppers could rent for $1,000 or less in various cities, we learned that not only does rent vary greatly across state and city lines, but also from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Check out the infographic below to see what $1,000 can rent when pitting popular cities, neighborhoods, state capitals and college towns against one another as well as where the best rental deals can be found. Read More

Today, we released the findings of our annual What Renters Want moving survey.  Throughout this survey, we learned a growing number of former homeowners are choosing to rent, employment relocation, cost savings and apartment size topped the list of reasons people are moving this year, and there was a significant increase in renters seeking out the trusted opinions of others during their apartment search through review websites and recommendations.

Additionally, the survey sheds light on: Read More

As the culmination of our second annual cause campaign Raising Awareness. Taking Action: A Campaign to Help End Homelessness, Apartments.com donated $35,000 to three wonderful organizations dedicated to combating homelessness. This past week, I had the personal privilege to travel to Vogel Alcove in Dallas, TX and People Serving People in Minneapolis, MN to present two checks for $12,500, and then surprised the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless with a check for $10,000.

As part of our campaign, we promised to donate $1 to be shared equally between People Serving People and Vogel Alcove for every new “LIKE” Apartments.com received on Facebook from November until the end of December. While not an official recipient of the 2012 campaign, The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless was presented with a $10,000 check by our General Manager and Senior Vice President, Dick Burke, in recognition for their partnership with Apartments.com in our inaugural cause campaign in 2011. Read More

Just in time for the holidays, Dick Burke, the GM and SVP of Apartments.com, surprised a family facing hard times, including nowhere to live, with free rent for a year on The Ricki Lake Show. Watch now to see the family’s reaction to receiving this great news in this heart-warming segment.  Also, stay tuned for the results of the Apartments.com Raising Awareness. Taking Action. A Campaign to Help End Homelessness later this month.
Read More

Apartments.com named Dan Bakst, of Tampa, FL, the 2012 Roommate of the Year! As the Grand Prize winner, Dan is walking away with Free Rent for a Year plus $10,000. Besting video entries submitted from coast to coast, Dan proved he was in tune with what it takes to be the Roommate of the Year in his soulful music video entitled The All-Star Roommate Musical. Watch Dan’s reaction on learning he has been crowned the 4^th annual Roommate of the Year by Apartments.com.

Read More