Summerwind Rental Home: $2,295

This gorgeous home in the Summerwind neighborhood in the Highlands area of Renton is now available for rent! This 3 bed/2.25 bath home offers a spacious living & dining room with vaulted ceilings and a wood burning fireplace. The kitchen has an abundance of natural light, stainless steel appliances, new cabinets and opens to a sunken family room. The entertainment-sized patio is surrounded by a lovely landscaped yard with a sprinkler system. This home is near great schools, and within walking distance to numerous shops. If you are interested in this or other Seattle area rentals, contact your local real estate agent today.

Status:	For Rent
Bed/Bath:	3/2.5
Price:	$2,295

Madison Park Rental Home : $6,250

*Synced from the Seattle Luxury Rental Blog
This nice sunny Madison Park home on a corner lot with a huge level and enclosed lawn area is now available for rent. Incredible, authentic craftsman features updates throughout, four bedrooms plus an office and sitting room. Kitchen, family room, and four and a half bathrooms with heated floors in a wonderful location, right across from McGilvra Elementary school and a short distance to Madison Park shops and restaurants. This is a classic home and fantastic location! If you’re interested in this, or other Seattle area rentals, contact your local real estate agent today.

Status:	For Rent
Bed/Bath:	4/4.5
Price:	$6,250

Things You Can Do To Secure Your Rental Deposit Back

When tenants move out of their rentals, there are many things that landlords and tenants tend to disagree on in terms of acceptable  wear on the living space. Some landlords won’t charge tenants for minor scratches on the wall and floors, but if you want to receive most of your damage deposit back, here is a nice checklist of things you can do to ensure the deposit lands in your bank account. Be sure to do a walk through with your landlord upon moving in and out of your rental, and take photos of any damage to the walls, windows, appliances etc to make sure you are not held liable for those damages when you move out.
If you live with a pet or have some noticeable stains to the carpets, be sure to give your carpets a good cleaning prior to the move out inspection, as this is something many tenants are charged for. You also want to make sure you have it in writing for who is responsible for cleaning the carpets when you move out. When you’re doing the move out walk through with your landlord, be sure to take note of any damages they intend to hold you accountable for, and review your move in notes and photos to be certain they weren’t there before you moved in. Any discrepancies should be brought to their attention prior to your move out. If you are interested in finding a new rental home, contact your local real estate agent today.

Credit Bureaus Now Considering Rent Payment History In Score Criteria

*Synced From Seattle Luxury Rental Blog
Your credit score. That elusive number between 300 and 850 that seems to follow you around wherever you go, determining whether you can buy that new car, rent that apartment, and perhaps most distressing for many Americans – whether you can become a homeowner. For many mortgage lenders, the minimum credit score required to approve a home loan is 640, and until now, on-time rent payments have not been a factor in determining your score. For many long-time renters who have accumulated a perfect track record of on-time payments, that omission has been a lost opportunity to give their credit a boost.
But now, Experian and TransUnion, two of the major national credit scoring bureaus, have begun using rental payment data in their credit-scoring criteria in partnership with a website called RentTrack. The site aims to help renters build credit by allowing them to pay their rent online, and by allowing landlords to report their tenants’ payment records to the bureaus. According to this report, almost 20 percent of renters saw their credit scores increase by 10 points after just a month of their landlord reporting payments. While it costs $1.95 per month for renters to use the site to pay online, they can also use it to track their credit progress, and many landlords will cover the cost.
For someone who hasn’t had much opportunity to build credit, this is a great way to practice good habits by making sure your rent is paid on time while simultaneously raising your credit score and opening the door to a future mortgage and home purchase. For more information on renting in Seattle, contact your local real estate agent today.

Average Rent in Seattle Nearing $1,300/Month

*Synced From Seattle Luxury Rentals Blog
After rising by 6.8 percent in the first quarter of this year, the average rent for an apartment in the Seattle area is continuing to rise as the year progresses, and the average now stands at $1,284 per month, according to a report in The Seattle Times. Since this statistic includes not just the city of Seattle but the surrounding cities, as well, there is quite a bit of variation in the average price when broken down by city, and even by neighborhood. The average in West Bellevue tops the list at $1,912 per month, while the average in SeaTac is more than $1,000 cheaper at $901 per month. In the city of Seattle alone, the average is $1,445. There is also a significant difference in rental costs depending on when the unit was built. For units built after 2010, the average is $1,754, whereas the average for a building built in the 1970′s is $1,019.
Among Seattle neighborhoods, rents in Ballard have gone up by the highest percentage, having risen 12.3 percent over the quarter to $1,628. For a neighborhood that has historically been home to mostly single-family homes, the apartment-building boom is significantly changing the residential face of the neighborhood, and while rents are high, Ballard also posted the city’s highest vacancy rate of 8.6 percent in the second quarter. There are many units still under construction, and when they are complete apartment inventory will have quadrupled over the past six years. To go along with that, vacancy rates are expected to rise to 18 percent.
If you are interested in renting in the Seattle area, contact your local real estate agent today.