Looking for first apartment do's and dont's?

peniskowski

peniskowski

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Aug 5, 2012
So after securing another job, I'm thinking about moving out of my family house and into an apartment with my girl and dog. Been searching craigslist for a while to see if anything catches my eye and think I found something I really liked.

I'm going to view the place later today with my gf. Just wondering if there was any must ask questions and any tips to try to negotiate price. Any feedback will be helpful.
 
1. Get renters insurance

2. Inspect the apartment THOROUGHLY. Open all cabinets and look in corners for critters or critter traps.

3. Get your lease in writing and look at the fine print.
 
How long have you and your girl been together? I would suggest holding off on moving into your first place with her. Moving in takes the relationship to a whole different level and you need to make sure you're ready for it.
 
1. Don't move in with your girl.

2. If you move in with your girl, make sure the lease is in your name and she is not on it AT ALL.

3. DO NOT MOVE IN WITH YOUR GIRL.
 
Sick beard and dog guy.

I'd suspect this is going to depend on region - where are you located?

Use padmapper.com - helpful for looking at locations.
 
I live with my current girlfriend for the past year in my rents house and my previous girlfriend for 5 years. There is no lease, it's month by month. Fill me in on renters insurance
 
Check water pressure, trash situation, turn on all appliances, if you have neighbors living above you, have them walk around to see if the floor makes alot if noise. Ask how many properties the landlord owns.
 
JJs07 said:
1. Get renters insurance

2. Inspect the apartment THOROUGHLY. Open all cabinets and look in corners for critters or critter traps.

3. Get your lease in writing and look at the fine print.
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emphasis on 2 and 3. look for black little pellets in cabinets, and the out of sight nooks where the floor meets the oven or cabinet, etc. its mice poop. check behind fridges. (experience talking :smh:)

flush the toilet, make sure its not struggling n ****. actually run thru all that plumbing. make sure hot water is there, water pressure. if its a multi floor apt, kno that the 2nd floor will be considerably toastier than the first esp if the heating unit is on second floor.

check for crappy windows for drafts/leaks etc.



MAKE SURE YOU GET A CLEAN APT. you do not want to be signing for a dirty *** apt bleedat.
 
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The trick I always liked was scoping the apartment at night to see the surroundings and neighborhood. Make sure the walls are thick, cuz nobody wants to hear someone else getting it in. Unless your into that kinda thing.
 
Peniskowski said:
I live with my current girlfriend for the past year in my rents house and my previous girlfriend for 5 years. There is no lease, it's month by month. Fill me in on renters insurance
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Dont get any roommates ( if your room mate doesnt pay his portion, you BOTH will get evicted and/or sued)

Dont provide anymore than 1 months rent for your security (its NY state law)

Dont pay anyting in cash. Pay with cashiers checks, money orders or personal checks and keep receipts for every single one.

Do get a lease signed by both the landlord/owner and you with a definitive start and end date (otherwise known as a lease term)

Do look thru the apartment thoroughly BEFORE signing a lease.

Do ask about bed bugs history for the entire building as they can spread and move quickly.
 
knowledgebones72 said:
1. Don't move in with your girl.

2. If you move in with your girl, make sure the lease is in your name and she is not on it AT ALL.

3. DO NOT MOVE IN WITH YOUR GIRL.
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:rofl:
qft
i forgot to mention this one. I see this situation all the time at my job. I do lease administrating and accounts receivable for NYC. So many times the girl or guy break up and leaves the other with the apartment. Problem is, if your name is on the lease as the leaseholder, youre responsible for that rent regardless if you move out or not, for the entire lease term.
 
- DO go on apartmentratings.com. My homegirl almost moved into a legit hell hole (i'm talking mold, big white lab mice, flying roaches, broke heat & a/c). If it wasn't for that site she would've never know because the model apt they showed was clean as hell.
 
knowledgebones72 said:
1. Don't move in with your girl.

2. If you move in with your girl, make sure the lease is in your name and she is not on it AT ALL.

3. DO NOT MOVE IN WITH YOUR GIRL.
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Smart advice. Not to wish bad on a relationship, but what if the lease outlasts the relationship. Could be potentially more money for you to spend down the road.
 
like I said there is no lease...I can move out whenever I please if I opt to move in. All he's asking is a deposit and I get the keys.
 
malikdagoat said:
- DO go on apartmentratings.com. My homegirl almost moved into a legit hell hole (i'm talking mold, big white lab mice, flying roaches, broke heat & a/c). If it wasn't for that site she would've never know because the model apt they showed was clean as hell.
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hey i was just looking at reviews on that site for this apartment we may be moving into soon & the reviews made my stomach churn. then i looked up previous apartments we've lived in that i don't remember being all that bad with equal/more negative reviews. i figure they might as well call that site apartmentbashing.com why do you swear by it? are you taking those reviews as facts or did your girl go back to the apartment and witness those things for herself? just trying to figure out how much salt i should take with those reviews thats all. don't f*ck me(answer this when you see it, it might be too late lol)
 
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knowledgebones72 said:
1. Don't move in with your girl.

2. If you move in with your girl, make sure the lease is in your name and she is not on it AT ALL.

3. DO NOT MOVE IN WITH YOUR GIRL.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. If this is your first spot you deserve to have and are going to want your own space. I would suggest (this is only my opinion take it with a grain of salt) moving in by yourself at first and then of course have her crash over there on weekends or whenever yall chill together but still keep it your spot. Then after a few months or a year if everything is still going great between yall then you can decide to move her in.

/rant

General tip - when you do your apartment tour do so when people are home from work so you gauge if you have thin walls or cielings. It sucks having an apartment where you have a neighbor above you that stomps or has kids and you can hear every step they take. Or having thin walls and hearing your neighbor getting it in with his girl while your trying to sleep.
 
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