Recommended Reviews for Chicago Apartment Finders

Of note:  I did not go through CAF to look for an apartment. Found one on craigslist that was being shown by CAF.

So with that being said, I had a decent experience with Chicago Apartment Finders. Anthony who works at the Belmont location was the agent I worked with and he was wonderful. I can't say enough good things about him. My roommate and I were out of state so we coordinated with my parents to go so see the apartment for us. He was very accommodating with their work schedule. Unfortunately the first apartment we saw we ended up loosing to the first applicants (which we were notified about) who eventually agreed to pay full price.  This was very disappointing but Anthony found another similar unit in the same building through another CAF agent and worked with us to again show it to my parents. He was very accessible, answered our multiple e-mails in a timely manner and was also reachable by phone/text. Just all around very helpful. One thing that I wish we would have been told is that the building we're renting in is part of CHA's mixed-income housing project.

The leasing/closing department is where things got annoying. I understand it's a busy time for renting but after turning in all applications and fees it took over a week for us to get the lease. When we did the e-mail noted things such as signing lead paint disclosures and condo forms which were not included. I called the closing department twice before someone was sort of able to answer my questions. I finally got a hold of the agent in charge of our lease and she told me that the e-mail is a standard template and that if the building was built after 1978 we didn't need a disclosure form and the condo we were renting did not have forms. This makes absolutely no sense. Why include this in the e-mail if it's not pertinent to us.

Overall, CAF wasn't terrible but could be much better. Everyone I interacted with was polite and pleasant but the closing department was not very helpful unless you speak with your agent directly. Definitely room for improvement.