¡Estoy muy confundido!

Gregory L. Schultz wrote:

I have been calling rentals on clasificados, and it is quite the challenge. My Spanish is a bit wobbly, and, so far, I have only reached people who are deficient in English. Any suggestions?

Not really, other than improving your Spanish or having somebody who is fluent in Spanish call for you. You could of course go another route and contact a realtor, many of them are bi-lingual.

Use an agent.

If you are having that much trouble already you might want to rethink things. When you get there  you will have to deal with a miriyad of things and most of the people you will have to talk to speak little or no English.

Hi, Gregory L Schultz. May we ask why you are moving to PR?

For educational purposes.

Are you looking for a standard year lease or semester length?

Standard year lease. I have been studying History at The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. I have one year left, but decided to take a year off. I am interested in Spanish colonial history, and have taken  much Spanish instruction. However, you do not really learn a language until you immerse your self in a culture.

I fully agree re learning the language. iI didn't learn any Spanish until I moved to Panama. Then it was off to the races.
Where are you looking to live? I imagine Old San Juan is at the top of your list because of the fantastic architecture there.

Where are you looking & what is your approximate budget? I may be able to recommend a realtor if you post some details as we recently did this ourselves.

Even if you are relatively fluent in Spanish, it is always easier to speak in person than on the phone!

The island being the size that it is, one could live anywhere and be able to visit the whole territory. San Juan does not really appeal to me: too touristy.
I have a tentative offer of an apartment in Mayagüez (pending my viewing the place).
I also have interests in Biology. Consequently I would like to be able to study the flora and fauna of the sea and forest near home.
If the island were divided into four sections, along North-South and East-West axis, I am attracted to the North-West section: Mayagüez and up, then over to Arecibo.
Nevertheless, until I sign something, I am keeping my options open. $500 per month is my upper limit including elec. Unless I can figure out how to be extremely miserly with my electricity consumption.
I do not need to be in a fancy place, just safe, and not in a hovel.

Why are you using Skype and paying for calls? most cell phone plans include Puerto Rico;  it is PART OF THE USA!!  Sprint, AT&T and even Verizon cell calls are included in your plan!  Verizon doesn't work on the island, however. very bad service. go with AT&T or Sprint.
google short term rentals in Puerto RIco and you will get RONNIE properties or PALERMO realty  both are fluent in English as are many people here.

Hey Gregory.  We live in Mayaguez, and are from Wisconsin too.  We used a real estate agent to find a rental home.  Actually, I had my Dad (who is fluent) call about 4 real estate agents. Only one didn't speak English.  I actually encounter very few people who don't know basic English.

If you are in the area and want to get together, lemme know!