It’s never easy finding a place to live in a new town. When you don’t speak the language, it’s harder still. What areas to look in, where to find good listings… those are things you need an insider to tell you, preferably an insider who has some sense of what your personal preferences are. The placement coordinator at my school tried to help, but, since I am an American, he suggested that I might want to look in the upscale suburb of Zapopan. I, however, wanted to stay in the Zono Centro, maybe not right in the heart of downtown, which is a bit loud and congested, but still within walking distance of the historical district.

Fortunately, everyone here uses What’sApp to conduct business as well as for personal correspondence. So, I was able to look up a few key phrases and text potential landlords for information.

After obsessive online searching and quite a few in-person viewings, including some real adventures, I came to realize that the rental choices pretty much break down as follows:

• Furnished rooms in large colonial buildings. These places are available on a short-term or long-term basis. Most rooms have their own bathroom, with a shared kitchen and public area. Typically, the furniture is hideous, mismatched student crap, but even in the nicer ones, it’s a very college dorm-like experience. Indeed, many students and recent grads live in places of this sort.
• Unfurnished apartments in older buildings. These tend to be not just unfurnished, but unfitted: You have to bring your own kitchen cabinets, appliances, bathroom cabinets, and light fixtures. Often, a toilet, shower stall, bathroom sink, and kitchen sink are all that’s provided.
• Unfurnished modern apartments and houses. These often come with some or all of the amenities. In Zapopan, you can rent a house with a built-in kitchen for about $500 USD/month. In trendy city neighborhoods, a really fabulous 3 br/2 BA highrise apartment goes for about $1100 USD/month. Not exactly peanuts, but more than my teacher’s salary!

To compound the situation, for longer-term rentals, most landlords require one month’s security, the first month’s rent, and a fiador — someone who guarantees they will pay the rent if you fail to do so.

Some of the best leads I got came from just riding around on my bike looking for Se Renta signs. On one occasion, I saw a For Rent sign on a recently painted colonial-style building that looked intriguing. After riding my bike across town to pick up the keys at a gas station food mart (no explanation as to why), I peddled back to check the place out. I opened the outer gate and found the apartment, unlocked the top and bottom locks… and the door would not budge. I’m notoriously bad with keys, so after repeated attempts, I asked the next-door neighbor to help me. She could tell right away that there was a third lock for which I did not have the key. Through the window I could see tile floors and a sunny outdoor space. I wanted in! After much pantomiming and miscommunication, the neighbor arranged for the guy next door to lead me up to the roof of the adjoining building and hold a ladder for me while I climbed down onto the patio. Turns out tile floors and a sunny patio were all the apartment had. The kitchen and bathroom areas were doorless alcoves off the patio, devoid of everything except a sink, toilet, and shower head. Not a project I wanted to take on.

Then I saw an ad for “Afrancesados departamentos amueblados” — “Frenchified furnished apartments.” I raced right over and immediately fell in love. The apartment consists of a spacious tiled bathroom, a full kitchen with stove and fridge, and a large room that serves as bedroom, living room and office. All the space I need! The only Frenchification in sight are the words “Le Trianon” etched in the frosted glass windows of my front door (well, that and some faded Louis XVI-type prints that I immediately removed). The furniture is crappy, but in a charming, colonial way. There are termites in the armoire and just the slightest hint of hot water in the shower. But, the double-shuttered windows are 7 feet high; the ceiling, a towering 13 feet high. I don’t have my own outdoor space, but there is a beautiful shared patio and a sunny laundry area. Utilities included, I pay about $395 USD/month. The place is a dump, yet it’s perfect.

Patio area