Tips to Finding the Right Apartment for You

Are you looking for a new place to live? It has been estimated that the average person will move 12 times during their lives. If you are apartment hunting, there are some things to make the experience better. Whether you are looking for luxury apartments or for a gated community rental, these can make your experience go much smoother.

Focus on certain areas. If you new to a city, learn a bit about the different neighborhoods. Get out and walk around, get a feel for the shops and the people. It might be harder to walk around the areas when you are looking for a gated community rental but you can go by and ask the management office if you can check the place out. If you get a chance to talk to any of the people who live in the neighborhood or have one of the gated community rentals, you can ask what they think of the area. Decide what kind of neighborhood interests you. Knowing where you want to rent can make your search a lot easier.

1. Decide what kind of place you want. Make a list of the rental amenities that you want and those that you need. If you have a cat, you need to find a pet friendly community. If you have a car, you may want to only look at places that offer off street parking. Is having a washer/dryer in the unit a must have for you? Can you live without central air conditioning? You can narrow your search to places that have what you need and want.

2. Make a checklist to compare the places you see. If you are looking at more than one property, keep a checklist to compare the pros and cons of all of the rentals that you see. When you start to look at a lot of places, they can all blur together. Take pictures to show your friends and family.

3. Get all of your documents together. There is often an application that you have to complete when you are looking to rent a place. From the gated community rentals to the apartments you may see, you sill have to fill some paperwork out. Talk to your references before you give their names and numbers to the real estate companies.andnbsp;

4. Ask a lot of questions. If you are interested in a place there are a lot of questions you should ask:

• What are the average utility costs?
• Is there a cable hook up?
• What are the internet options?
• Where is the local grocery store?
• Is there any public transportation near by?
• What are the parking options?
• Is there a washer and dryer in the unit?

5. How does the place smell? If you walk into an apartment or gated community rental, pay attention to how the place smells.

6. Check out the location multiple times. Go by during the day. Go by the neighborhood at night and on the weekend. You may get a totally different vibe from a neighborhood in the nighttime than you get during the day. This may not be as big of a deal when you are looking at gated community rentals but can make a difference for apartments and for some neighborhoods.

7. Make sure you can get everything in writing. If you negotiate anything such as repairs and the like, get that in writing. It is easy to make verbal promises that can later be broken. If you are told you can have your kitty cat and not pay a pet deposit, get that in writing. Whatever negotiations you do and promises they make should be codified in writing.

8. Have someone look over your lease. When you get a lease from your landlord, take it to a lawyer you trust and have them look it over. There are a lot of unscrupulous landlords out there who will put items into their leases that are wrong and often illegal. You can avoid signing anything that makes you handle repairs that the landlord should, you should not have to replace the roof, for example. It is always good to have an expert look over the lease to keep you protected.

Have fun with your search and you will find a great place to live.