To Jess-
Former rental cars can be in better condition than other used cars for a simple reason: the major rental companies maintain their cars very well, in part because they know how rough the renters can be. Compare that to other pre-owned or pre-leased vehicles, which are crapshoots when it comes to service history. (e.g one of my previous bosses almost never took his lease car in for service, as he knew he was returning it after a few years.)
If you can swing a bit more, there are also those vehicles that were owned by the company or the dealership itself. (I think they are advertised as "program cars.") Some of these are models owned by the company but perhaps driven by the employees as a perk. Other times, they are the cars used for test drives. In either case, these undergo impeccable maintenance by the dealership. My dad bought a '91 Camry or a '92 Nissan Stanza* which had been a former tester. He saved several thousand for a car that was a year old and in like-new condition.
Of course, you'll proceed with caution no matter what you buy -- taking it for a thorough test drive, having a trusted mechanic give it a look-see. The point is, don't be discouraged that the car is a former rental. Under the right circumstances, that could be its biggest endorsement.
*Note: I can't remember which one was which, as both purchases took place just a few months apart when I was in college. The other he bought privately. But the Stanza lasted until I got rid of it four years ago. And the Camry is still running.
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