I have started looking already, although I don't plan on trying to sign a lease until May or June. I will be moving to Tuscaloosa, AL and I currently live in Milwaukee, WI so I'm quite a ways away, which is what has me worried. I plan on visiting for a weekend to view as many apartments as I can, and also talking to current grad students to see if they have recommendations.
A couple people have mentioned realtors - has anyone actually used a realtor to find an apartment? I thought of doing that but haven't looked into it. If you have used a realtor, have you had good experiences? I think it might make it easier to have someone helping in my search, who is maybe able to find the smaller places that I don't see online, but I don't want it to be more of a hassle than it is worth.
