Renters, There's Still Time to Bargain

Yesterday we reminded you that May 1st is moving day. Chances are good that you or someone you know is about to take the big leap into a new place - but don't sign that lease without a little insider's knowledge.

According to the UK's National Landlords Association (NLA), landlords are still experiencing high levels of vacancies in their rental properties (as of March 2010, 52% of UK landlords experienced vacancies in the last year). While this is a UK-based group, the problems with securing tenants remains as much of a problem stateside. So as long as apartment inventory exceeds renters, you have the upper hand.

While normally I wouldn't suggest poking around on landlord association websites (yawn!), a little reconnaissance on sites like those could help prepare you for negotiations -- when you know what the other side is thinking.