Craigslist Housing vs. Alcove Rooms to Rent

Are you renting out a room or looking for rooms to rent on craigslist? Craigslist is an incredibly popular way to find a place to live or to rent out your place so we’ll give you tips on how to use Craigslist effectively and also compare it to Alcove, which offers a safer and more financially beneficial solution for both renters and landlords.

Tips for Applying for a Room to Rent on Craigslist

First, let’s acknowledge that Craiglist can be super competitive and frustrating for the average person looking to rent so don’t be discouraged. When you’re responding to a post on Craigslist and competing with a bunch of other replies, here are a few tips to stand out amongst the crowd. 

1. Try to Attach a Photo of Yourself or Send Public Social Profile Links

Just like anything else these days that involves applying over the internet, landlords, and roommates want to know you’re a real person so a photo or link to your Linkedin/Instagram or similar platform goes a long way to show that you have a public background and reputation.

2. Try to Be Specific About Your Background and What You Like About the Place

Similar to a good dating profile, saying you like hanging out with friends or eating food gives zero insight to potential roommates about your personality so try to be specific about who you are when describing yourself. It also helps to reference a specific thing you noticed in the post about the place to show you’re not mass-sending out replies on Craigslist, but you actually, specifically want to live there.

3. Set up at least a 30-Min In-Person Meeting/Tour If Possible

To avoid potentially disastrous outcomes, it’s always best to tour the place, meet the roommates and collectively decide if it’s a good fit in that order. It’ll save you a lot of potential drama or headaches later. 

4. Follow Up After Meeting

If you think about how many potential people your future roommates will have to show the apartment to, it makes sense to stand out by sending a follow-up note saying how you enjoyed meeting and think it’s a great fit. 

Beware of Craigslist Scams 

Craigslist offers very little verification at all so it’s potentially risky for both a person trying to list a room or a person looking to rent. Always be cautious of the personal information someone may be asking of you, the time and place that someone wants to meet, or how they arrange to handle potential rent. Unfortunately, if you do have a bad experience, Craigslist is often little help in any scenario so understand you’re mostly on your own when it comes to using the platform.

How Alcove Offers a Better Experience for Landlords and Roommates

Landlords

• If you're looking for:

  • Reaching The Most Number of Potential Renters.

    • Craigslist does not offer any help posting.

    • Alcove: Alcove automatically handles sourcing high-quality applicants from 20+ channels for you with their marketing engine.

  • Verifications & Screenings

    • Craigslist offers no background checks and anyone can contact you.

    • Alcove background screens every potential tenant including on their credit qualification through our Transunion integration before you review. Each tenant also will have to submit a separate security deposit.

  • Maintenance & Home Improvement Guidance

    • Craigslist does not offer any support. 

    • When you list with Alcove, we’ll make recommendations after an inspection to help you lease it quickly. We’ll also help you manage the place after the leases have started.

  • Organized Rent Payments & Higher Income

    • Craigslist does not offer any support. 

    • Receive rent through the Alcove portal every month, and earn potentially 10-30% more rent (translating to 50% more NOI) than traditional leasing (contact us for your offer)
      

Roommates Looking to Rent

• If you're looking for:

  • An Online Process & Easy Moving

    • Craigslist doesn’t offer any help.

    • Alcove’s entire process is done online and homes are preconfigured with utilities, furnished common areas (*in some units), and smart locks that make moving less painful.

  • Verifications and Screenings

    • Craigslist doesn’t offer any help. 

    • Alcove background checks every potential roommate and has procedures in place in case there are potential issues.

  • A Cheaper Rent Potentially

    • Craigslist might offer great deals, but you’ll have to do a lot of work yourself.

    • Alcove’s all-inclusive rentals are up to 50% cheaper on average than a normal studio apartment rent.

Learn more about where to find potential roommates online with our full guide.