You just got relocated to Boston for your dream job. Your new employer wants you to move within a month. You’ve never been to Boston and don’t have friends in the area yet. You need an apartment asap. What do you do?

Well, if you’re like most people, you start with searching Craigslist for Boston Apartments. After all, it worked for you before when you found your first couch, your gently used MacBook, even perhaps your new job.

But finding a Boston apartment on Craigslist has become like finding a Patriot receiver who can catch a pass in the Super Bowl. (Too soon?)

And here’s why:

There are so many leasing agents and offices in Boston all competing for your attention and Craigslist is a great way to get it. For them, it’s free advertising that reaches hundreds, maybe even thousands, of renters.

That’s a good thing, right?

Unfortunately, it’s not. Filtering through the thousands and thousands of ads can become daunting and finding the right place can be impossible.

It’s partly because of what’s referred to as the old “Bait and Switch”. The goal of this is to persuade a renter to call on that “too good to be true” apartment in order to get the phones ringing. You might have heard “Oh, sorry. That was just rented this afternoon but I have a similar apartment to show you. It’s a little more money and not quite in the same area.”

Oddly enough, you’ll see the same apartment newly advertised a few days later.

It’s also makes it tough when companies are just advertising the company and not a specific apartment. You click on the link and there’s no actual apartment info, but rather a link to another link that brings you to another link. It’s becomes hard to build a rapport or trust with a Boston rental agent when you can’t get an answer.

A few other reasons we previously wrote about are misrepresentation and the whole “no fee” sham.

So what do you do?

Find a great rental agent first who can help you and guide you, rather than trying to locate an apartment first.

How To Find a Great Boston Rental Agent

The best way to find a great new home is ask someone who’s been there – get a referral from your peers. But if you’re relocating to Boston from out of town and don’t have many contacts here, try:

• Referrals from your new employer. Maybe someone in your new office can point you to a great rental agent they worked with in Boston.
• Yelp! can be a wonderful way to find a knowledgeable, trustworthy Boston rental agent – read the reviews.
•  Ask friends on Facebook.

Research their website, learn how they work, read their business philosophy, meet the agent, google them, hear from their customers, etc.  Basically stalk them.Make sure there’s a fit between your needs and their service.  It works a whole lot better than just searching Craigslist for an apartment and not protecting yourself from poor service.

The idea is to have someone who will be able to guide you to, not sell you, a great new apartment that fits your needs so you can focus on packing and travel and the new job….

…And, of course, learning how to say “pahk tha cah”….