How & Where to Find Private Landlords Near You

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Property management specialist Nathan Miller shares tips for finding a private landlord

Co-authored by Nathan Miller and Eric McClure

Last Updated: February 20, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Finding Private Landlords
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• Pros
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• Cons
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• Avoiding Scams
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• Expert Insights
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• How Can You Find a Private Landlord to Rent Property From?
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• Expert Interview
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• Expert Q&A

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From high rent payments and past evictions to a poor credit score or a lack of rental history, there are plenty of reasons why you might be saying “goodbye” to the world of corporate landlords and “hello” to the world of private ones. But how are you supposed to find a non-corporate landlord, and what can you expect out of the rental process? We’re here to answer all your questions, and we even met with property management specialist Nathan Miller to help you maximize the odds of getting your dream place!

How do you find private landlords?

Property management specialist Nathan Miller recommends the following sources when you’re looking for a private landlord:

• Check local sources like Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, and physical postings on local bulletin boards.
• Look for “For Rent” signs in neighborhoods where you want to live.
• Ask for recommendations on local social network groups like Facebook and Reddit.

Steps

Section 1 of 5:

How to Find Private Landlords

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   Facebook Marketplace Head over to the “Property Rentals” section of Facebook Marketplace and type in your town and/or zip code to find a variety of rental homes. This is still popular with private landlords, says Miller, but it isn’t used as often by use this platform to advertise affordable apartment, townhouse, condo, and house listings—just hit the listing you’re interested in to get the landlord’s contact info, and then go from there.

   • Use the “Sort by” feature to your local listings in a specific order, like lowest to highest price or what’s nearest or farthest from your current location.

   Meet the wikiHow Expert

   Nathan Miller is an entrepreneur, landlord, and real estate investor. In 2009, he founded Rentec Direct, a cloud-based management company that now works with over 16,000 landlords and property managers across the U.S.
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   Facebook Groups There are plenty of Facebook groups dedicated to connecting prospective renters with private landlords. Miller says to make sure it’s allowed, then to ask if anyone has rentals available. He adds, “Be prepared to get responses from both private landlords and employees of corporations.” Here are a few groups to help you get started on your search:

   • Private Landlords Property for Rent
   • Houses to Rent/Low Income
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   Hotpads Enter your location, price range, and room preferences on Hotpads’ homepage to get redirected to a customized results page. In the “All filters” section at the top of the page, select the “For rent by owner” option to see all the private rental options in your area.
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   ByOwner Enter your location on ByOwner’s homepage, along with your more specific rental preferences (rent range, number of bedrooms, etc.). All of the property listings on this site are For Rent By Owner (FRBO), so you can be confident that you’ll find a listing from a private landlord.
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   “For Rent” signs in neighborhoods Do you have your heart set on a general neighborhood you’d like to move to? Miller recommends looking for “For Rent” signs in the area. He adds that private landlords often have generic signs with just a phone number, while large corporations and property managers typically have signs with their own personal branding.
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   Craigslist Craigslist is another local source that Miller recommends. To get started, hit the “apts/housing” option under the “housing” category on the Craigslist homepage. Both private and corporate landlords post listings on this site, so take a look at each individual listing to see who’s renting it out. Like other rental listing sites, Craigslist lets you sort your results by price, location, and other specifications.

   • Warning: Craigslist is well-known for its share of scams and rip-offs. Double-check the listing and make sure that it’s not a scam before you reach out. Be on the lookout for listings that seem too good to be true, or where the landlord is “out of the area” and unable to be met in person.
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   Zillow Head over to Zillow’s website and type in your location, along with a rental price range that’s comfortable for you. While Zillow doesn’t let you sort your results by private vs. corporate landlords, they do provide an exhaustive list of rentals in your area (including ones offered by private landlords). With a little digging, you may find the perfect property that’s offered by a private landlord.

   • Tip: Corporately-owned properties are typically listed by a property management group, while privately-owned properties have labels like “no broker fee.”
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   Apartment List Fill out Apartment List’s exhaustive survey—it’ll pop up as soon as you enter your location on the site. From there, answer all the provided questions about your apartment preferences, like your ideal rent range, your estimated move-in date, your pet status, and so on. Although the site won’t sort your listings by private vs. corporate landlords, you can find the private listings with a little extra diligence and research.

   • Click on each individual listing and see who’s renting it out. Private landlords will likely post their name and contact info.
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   Domu Domu is the new kid on the block, but many renters prefer them because of their sleek UI and the depth of information you can find on rental listings. Domu actually has a tag for private landlords, so click on “Find an Apartment” at the top left and then click on the top right of the page where it says “filter.” Type “private landlord” into the “Keywords” box and take a look!
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    Redfin Type in your location on the Redfin homepage and scope out the list of rentals in your area. The listings do not always list what is or isn’t owned by a private landlord, but they often do, so read the descriptions to see who you’d be renting the unit from.
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    Trulia Type your location onto Trulia’s homepage and take a look at the listings in your area. Trulia features both corporate and private listings, so use their built-in search parameters to narrow down the type of property you’re looking for. From there, inspect each listing to see who the landlord is.
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    Other social media platforms Believe it or not, private landlords use a variety of social media platforms (besides Facebook) to promote their rental listings. Search for terms like “private rental” or “private landlord” on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and Twitter—you might be pleasantly surprised by what you find!

    • Miller adds that you can sometimes find private landlords in local Reddit groups.
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Section 2 of 5:

Benefits of a Private Landlord

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   Renting with a private landlord can offer extra flexibility. Renting with a property group can come with a lot of bells and whistles, such as an in-depth lease and a credit score check. Renting with a private landlord, however, often makes it easier to skip over a lot of the extra paperwork, contracts, and fine print that are commonly associated with corporate landlords.

   • Let’s say that you’d like to adopt a dog—a corporately managed property will have hard, non-negotiable terms on pets, while a private landlord can more easily make an exception.
   • Renting with a private landlord may also be more accessible if you’re struggling with issues like poor credit, past evictions, or prior financial issues.
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   You might not have to pay as much. Corporately-owned rentals do tend to offer more amenities (like an on-site gym or pool), but these extra perks can jack up your rent overall. Private rentals don’t always have these same amenities, which may lower your monthly bill.

   • Private landlords might also be more willing to negotiate with you on a lower rent. For instance, they might chop off part of your rent in exchange for your help with yard work.
   • Private landlords also don’t have all of the tools at their disposal that a big corporation does, so they tend to not price their units so aggressively to attract better tenants.
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   It might be easier to get in touch with private landlords. Maintenance requests can be tricky when you’re renting from a larger property group—there’s often some type of form involved, and the process can get convoluted. Private landlords, on the other hand, tend to be easier to reach if anything should go wrong on the property.
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Section 3 of 5:

Downside of a Private Landlord

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   Paying rent might not be as straightforward. Corporately-owned properties often offer simple ways to pay rent, like through a website. With a private landlord, you may be stuck filling out a check every month, which definitely isn’t convenient.
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   Private landlords can be omnipresent and/or strange characters. A big corporation won’t necessarily know you on a personal level, but if your goal is to be left alone, that’s probably a good thing. Private landlords have a reputation for being a little too involved with their properties, and all of the property monitoring tends to drive people a little nuts. If you’re unlucky, you could end up with a private landlord who won’t stop pestering you or chatting up a storm every time you seem them.

   • The reverse can also be true, though. If you like having a personal relationship with your landlord and you find a friendly, reasonable one, it can be a bit like having a really good neighbor who really cares that you’re happy with your apartment!
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   You might have to wait longer for maintenance repairs. Sure, it’s not necessarily hard to get in touch with a private landlord about a maintenance issue—but how long will it actually take them to fix the problem? Since the landlord personally owns the property, they might be a little stingy with repairs (or simply put the repairs on the back burner). A corporately-owned property will likely respond more quickly to your request.
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   Some private landlords may work with property management groups. In some situations, your landlord isn’t your main point of contact, even if they officially own the property. Instead, you’re forced to correspond with a property management group if you have any issues or questions, which can be a big inconvenience.
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Section 4 of 5:

Ways to Avoid Rental Scams

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1. 1
   Verify that the landlord is actually the owner of the property. Miller says, “There are a lot of scammers out there positioning themselves as private landlords trying to scam deposits out of prospective renters. Be absolutely sure you are dealing with the owner of the property before giving them any money.”

   • Miller adds, “I’ve heard about many prospective tenants getting scammed out of their entire savings looking for a deal.”
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   Compare the rental price to other listings. Scroll through rental sites to get a rough idea of what the average rent looks like for that type of property. Does the listing you found fall within that range, or does it seem absurdly low?

   • Let’s say that a 2-bedroom apartment goes for $1,700 in a nice neighborhood. If you find an apartment for $1,100 that claims to have all the same perks and amenities as a $1,700 option, it’s probably a scam listing.
   • Miller agrees, saying, “If the rate seems too good to be true for your area, you are likely communicating with a scammer.”
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   Ask to meet the private landlord and see the property in person. If the rental is legit, the landlord will meet up with you to show off the property and answer any of your questions. If they refuse to meet up or claim to be out of the country, just walk away—there’s a good chance that you’re getting scammed.

   • Some scammers really commit to the bit by getting fake keys made for the place that they’ll send your way via a third party (like a “lawyer”). If the landlord won’t meet and work with you directly, don’t bother with them.
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   Walk away if they ask for a wired payment. Any credible landlord will ask for a credible payment source, like a check. People who ask for cash, wire transfers, or gift cards as forms of payment are definitely scammers.
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Section 5 of 5:

Expert Advice on Apartment Hunting from a Landlord

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1. 1
   Look online to see if the landlord has any reviews. As Miller explains: “Check the property online. If it's a property manager, online reviews are a great source. Almost every property manager, and even some private landlords, have online reviews. Google reviews are a good, good source these days.”

   • For private landlords, search online to see if anyone has talked about them in local forums or on Facebook. Search the landlord's full name, in quotation marks, alongside “landlord” or the property address.
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   Jump on it if you find a unit you like. Miller says that most landlords are legally required these days to rent their units out on a “first come first serve” basis. That means that you shouldn’t sit around twiddling your thumbs if you stumble across a promising unit. Hit the landlord up ASAP and clear your schedule if you can to go see the unit and apply.
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   Show up to rental appointments well-dressed and on time. “That's important today because it's pretty rare,” Miller explains. “So show up, be on time, be clean, and drive a clean car.” This way, you’ll make a good impression with your potential future landlord.

   • Miller really emphasizes how rare it is for prospective tenants to show up on time. It’s a little thing that will really go a long way if you end up wanting the place!
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How Can You Find a Private Landlord to Rent Property From?

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Expert Q&A

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• Question

  Are there other ways to find private landlords with former customer reviews or feedback?

  

  Nathan Miller
  Property Management Specialist

  Nathan Miller is an entrepreneur, landlord, and real estate investor. In 2009, he founded Rentec Direct, a cloud-based property management company. Today, Rentec Direct works with over 16,000 landlords and property managers across the United States, helping them manage their rentals efficiently.

  

  Nathan Miller

  Property Management Specialist

  Expert Answer

  Online reviews serve as a valuable resource, with platforms like Google Reviews offering insightful feedback. Nearly every property manager and some landlords have a digital presence with reviews that can inform one's decision. Additionally, if there is access to information about previous tenants, obtaining references from them can be a valuable method for assessing the landlord's reputation and the property's history.

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Tips

• Check for “scam alert” warnings on certain rental listings. Sites like Craigslist let their users highlight posts that look pretty suspicious.
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• Always listen to your gut when you’re browsing through rental listings. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
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Warnings

• Think you’ve stumbled into a rental scam? If you live in the United States, report it to the Federal Trade Commission via this form.
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