Anyone teaching English in Cuenca?

Since I've been thinking about this move so much more recently, I was wondering, if anyone had any advice in finding an apartment    I would really like an apartment in el centro, cheap would be nice, smallish, is this something I should look for now or should I wait till I'm in country?  Pros and Cons, furnished vs unfinished, anything else I should think about.  I'll be on my own for the most part, so any information would be amazing!

I would wait until you get here. You really need to see first hand what is available and if it will meet your needs.

I rent furnished, as I just did not want the hassle of having "stuff". My wife is still in the US for another year, so a nice little one bedroom, 1 1/2 bath is just fine for me. I pay $450, a block away from Parque Calderon, all utilities except gas paid (I pay $3.00 for a tank that lasts me about a month, month and a half).

HTH

symo

I'm not an expert on Cuenca, but in general, furnished is going to be way more expensive. If you're planning on staying a year or more, furnish it yourself. I find its best to stay in a cheap hostel or hotel for a couple weeks and find apartments by walking the desired neighborhood looking for rent signs and or becoming friends with and asking some of the locals in the area. Usually, the best deals are not advertised.

Just a wild guess, but you might do better doing private tutoring than working for the starvation wages most schools pay English teachers.