Rent a flat or a house in Arizona

Wow lots of questions..
First and foremost to rent u need proof of employment, salary, length of stay.
2nd. Due to the market overflow of foreclosed home you need to be very diligent in your search and make sure you go with a Realtor and even then, double check that the house is really for rent by checking the county record or go to your county court house.
The situation here is people have bought and even rented house to find out later that all of it was a scam!
AZ is a transit state but also is 2nd home for retired people, so you see how easy it is to get scam.
3rd. Go to the Police station and ask to look at their reports on the neighborhood, break in, crimes, and foremost with children any convicted living within so many miles.
Arizona does not have "3 times you're out" law, but California has it, which means when a criminal strike 3 times, regardless of his wrong doing, he automatically goes to jail! So, guess what? they flee to AZ to avoid sentence.
4. Install or activate an alarm system same day as moving in. Preferably wireless, all electric connection are on the outside of your home here, not like on the East Coast where the panels are located inside, so any alarm system wired to your phone or cable is easy access; Change the code to the remote for the garage if one is provided.
5. Do not wear anything expensive or let anyone you do not know enter your home, you never know if it is a true Welcome or checking if your place is alarmed. Last year they even broke into people's home by breaking a whole in the wall! If you have a gate to access the back of your property get a lock ASAP and keep it locked at all times! If you are driving an out of state vehicle make sure you watch for anyone following you or watching so they know you’re routine! Make yourself very aware of your surroundings, people from out of state or country are easy target. At car wash never leave any Insurance or registration paper in the glove Dept. easy to steal your identiy once they have that!
When renting always try to have water and electricity included mostly applies for apartment, homes usually are not as it is very expensive and will eat your budget. In AZ it is the law to have your own insurance for the rental so shop around and get the best prices.
6. There are no set rental prices across the board; it all depends on the square footage and the area you wish to live.
7. If renting a home, make sure pool, lawn maintenance and all appliances (if any) are not your responsibility but the owner! These also are very expensive items to maintain!
8. If you are moving yourself with a truck make sure someone else stays at all time in the property and if alone, NEVER leave your door wide open unattended! Last year a family was moving in a new home & not knowing, the neighbors saw 2 different trucks coming and leaving, one was the owner, the other were thieves who took advantage of the situation, backed up their truck and emptied out the house before the owner came back!
9. Once you have signed your rental agreement usually you have your 1st and last month rent as a deposit but also some will include fees as Housekeeping cleaning, if the place, once you move out is in not properly cleaned. Also, due to the Real Estate market it is a good idea to add a clause that if the owner founds  himself in Foreclosure he needs to give you at least 30 days notice to vacate and recoup any moneys including your last month deposit! Too many renters have seen themselves out on the street overnight due to Bank repo. It is illegal for the owner to enter the premises without giving you 24 hour notice!
Make sure you also have at least 2 weeks or more to take inventory of the premises of what is damage and does not work, so if the owner is not willing to pay for repair, when you move out you are not left with the bill! Double check that air conditioning because 114 Fahrenheit in the summer, it better work!
Now that you settled in, to turn on water, electricity, cable, phone even the post office always carry with you your rental agreement at the beginning. Whatever you will do, requires proof of residency and it is mandatory! Then when everything is connected it is always good to keep a few bills on hand so any other services you might need, they usually will will ask you to prove residency!
Arizona gives you 3 months to change your driving license, yes you can try to beat the system but if you get caught, well it's on you!
Never leave any valuable in your cars anywhere even in your driveway! In the summer time do not leave anything that can melt, overheat or explode ( hair spray can) Avoid also to have Medicine delivered to your door as they can only tolerate temperature of a 104 for a short 24hrs after that your meds and even cosmetics will not be working as well or they can also be melted!  Packages, avoid to have them left at your door or ask your neighbor or some you trust to get it, very often they will be stolen, especially at XMAS time when thieves follow the UPS truck! A good idea if you can send them to your work place.
If your property gets broken in, file a police report ASAP but don't count on the Police to recover anything. It is a good idea to go to the Police priecing and ask if items were recovered and if you can look at them, they won't call you it’s up to you to go and check with them! Why you might ask? Well in AZ if after 2 years items recovered in a raid are not claim the Police put it up for auction for their own benefits so why should they help you when they can benefit from your break in! Personally I wish I would have known that :-( found out too late.
If you have a GPS in your car do not put your actual work or home address. Now, they have your car, your remote for the garage, your address and if NO alarm system home or you forgot to turn it on, they will THANK YOU for it (sarcasim here ;-). When renting and children are present PLEASE PLEASE make sure they do not walk alone no matter how old and how secure you feel in your neighborhood! Even 16 yrs old have been abducted and it is very high in AZ! Also, we are the bottom of the barrel on Education so do your homework and locate to the better School district or private school if you have the means to do so!
I think I covered the basics of moving to AZ, SO Welcome! Be aware and be safe!

Hello Noelle1223 and welcome to Expat.com!

Wow, thanks for these useful tips.

Harmonie.

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