- Finding an apartment was a huge headache.
- I didn’t expect all the shady ads, bad leads, and uncommitted leasing teams.
- I wanted a big-time variety of apartment choices with the attention of small-time landlord.
- The Lykens Companies Leasing Team gave me just that.
- Read my story.
I remember looking for apartments when my wife and I had just gotten engaged. We thought it was going to be fun. We planned on exploring different neighborhoods and finding the right fit. We didn’t realize that, in actuality, we were just signing ourselves up to jump through hoops. After we figured out our budget, I made a habit of checking Craigslist for different rentals in our price range and researching different property managers around Columbus to see who was trustworthy. We were trying to build a list of apartments to tour and check out. Needless to say, it wasn’t as fun as we first thought; in fact, it turned out to be a whole lot of work on top of wedding planning.
Finally, we created a small list of places that we were excited to tour. These apartments were advertised as newly updated, affordable, and in great locations, like the Short North and Clintonville. There was some work up front, but now we were in for the fun part—at least that’s what we thought.
The first apartment was absolutely perfect for us. It was newly updated. It was close to Ohio State, but far enough north that Clintonville felt like a stone’s throw away. The landlord seemed to really care about the property, too. He’d built a second story deck and invested in a new kitchen with everything you could want: a gas range, granite countertops, and elegant wooden cabinetry. There were washer and dryer hookups, it had a cozy study, and the bedroom was tucked away in a refurbished attack. All those features and it was under our price range! Perfect.
We were still a little bit skeptical though. The landlord made the current tenant lead the tour around the apartment. We’d only been in contact with him over text and he seemed pretty hands off—a good quality.
Sometimes.
We finished our tour and were ready to rent out that great apartment. We were excited about the future as we drove away after our tour. Then, my phone buzzed. “Sorry, but the landlord just texted me that he’d already rented out the property,” a text read. Despite scheduling our tour days ahead of time, the landlord had us tour the apartment after he’d already leased it out! We were disappointed, frustrated, and almost certain that we weren’t going to find an apartment that nice again.
The next day, I found an apartment on Craigslist for us to check out. It was advertised as a spacious, newly finished two-bedroom apartment with a washer and dryer, something that had definitely made it on our wish list. I contacted the property manager and set up an appointment.
A few hours later, we sat in the parking lot waiting. And waiting. And waiting a little longer. After a while, a car pulled up. Without a word, the leasing agent walked toward the front door of the apartment complex.
I knew within a second that we’d been the victims of a copied and pasted property description. This “open concept” was dark and dingy. It’s “newly remodeled” kitchen was a few years old, at least, with appliances that were crammed into its tight space. The bedrooms were small and their carpets weren’t even cleaned. The leasing agent wasn’t offering us any information about the place. It was fishy. Finally, I asked where the washer and dryer was. I bit my tongue when she told me that the shared, coin-operated washer and dryer was in a completely different facility.
Our bored leasing agent locked up the apartment and drove off. We stood in the parking lot defeated again.
We didn’t rent that apartment.
Our search continued. Wedding planning was gaining steam and we needed to check this off our list. A few days went by before I found something that looked halfway decent. My soon-to-be wife was working, so I drove over to the next tour with a friend. A college-aged tenant hired by the property manager greeted us. He was kind, helpful, and made an otherwise unimpressive apartment seem worth considering.
We stood in the kitchen and talked about availabilities. With some experience in the property management industry, I knew enough to ask detailed questions about the lease. Here’s what he didn’t tell me: hidden in our lease was a clause that would spike the rent only a few months after our move-in. Suddenly, a great deal became an out-of-budget ripoff.
I couldn’t believe that they’d tried to sneak a price increase by me. That wasn’t the type of integrity we wanted in our property manager.
Why did finding an apartment have to be so hard?
I wish I’d found a leasing team like the one at Lykens Companies.
What we want in apartment hunting (& what Lykens offers)
When we’re apartment hunting, the last thing we want to do is waste our valuable time. Underwhelming apartments, shady advertisements, and unresponsive leasing teams are the last things we want to deal with. In reality, our wish list is pretty small. Here’s what we really could use:
- Someone who can work with us to help us find right apartment for the right price.
- The personal connection of a small-time landlord.
- The apartment variety of a big-time property manager.
- A track record of integrity, clarity, and met promises.
Lykens Companies has a stellar Leasing Team. This dedicated bunch works with you to find a unit that checks off every box on their wish list. Whether that means a finding renovated loft in the Short North or an elegant single-family home in Victorian Village, our leasing agents treat each apartment hunter as an individual with a unique set of desires and one-of-a-kind collection of tastes.
“Every single person that I meet is at a different point in there life,” says Nicole Fuller, a Lykens leasing agent. “It’s important for me to find them an apartment that’s perfect for that point in life. It has to be my favorite part of the job—I love how many people I get to know.”
With over 1000 Lykens Companies units out there, it becomes a lot easier to find a home that meets your needs. Lykens isn’t worried about filling a single unit; Lykens is worried about putting you in the right unit.
With two decades and counting in the Short North and all of Metro Columbus, apartment shoppers can know that they aren’t risking signing a yearlong rip-off lease. Time tested integrity finds it’s way into every part of our business. That means that we don’t let our tenants get confused with hard to understand legal jargon, catch-22s, or any other less than fair practices.
I wish that my wife and I had dealt with the Lykens Companies Leasing Team when we were trying to find the perfect rental to start our marriage. If you’re reading this and are looking for the right apartment, let us help you.
Trust us. Finding an apartment doesn’t have to be hard.
