Soon it will be time to move again. With so many apartments online how can one decide which apartment is right for him or her particularly when one isn't able to view it in -person? For any number of reasons a prospect may not be able to tour an apartment, so it would make sense for a property management company or landlord to have a variety of photos and/or video showcasing the rental. Keep in mind, YouTube is widely used by realtors, so you might be able to find some great video of a apartment/town home and surrounding community.
As a shopper, you will want to pay close attention to the information about your future residence and ask questions of the management before you fill out an application and pay a fee such as:
1. Is the available suite an upstairs or downstairs unit?
2. How close is the office, pool area, workout room, laundry facility, a boiler room, parking lot, or any other place that might have potential noise near the apartment?
3. What is the color of carpet/cabinets/appliance/walls/door etc.? This might be an issue if the photo appears to show a questionable color and doesn't go well with one's furniture and decor.
4. Where is the nearest school/store/post office etc.? Sometimes one might overlook what is nearby when viewing a map, so it would be best to find out the exact location.
5. What are additional features in the suite? The ad might not have everything listed.
6. What are the on-site amenities? Again, there may be some features not listed.
7. Does the community welcome pets? Even if you don't have a pet, you will want to know because if you are sensitive to noise, you don't want a barking dog or a purring cat annoying you at your new residence.
8. Is there on-site storage, how big is it and where would it be located? You typically won't see photos of this.
9. Is there a parking garage? Another feature that you might not see in photographs.
10. How close is your building to...? Mention the address of your job, a nearby freeway, or some other place you might frequent.
It is very easy to overlook some crucial factors when shopping for an apartment. Avoid the distractions of a beautiful building design and the latest features to keep you from asking important questions.
Find out the requirements of leasing an apartment on this site. See labels.
Nicholl McGuire
Sunday
Thursday
You Can Move if You Have a Hefty Savings Account
Some people assume they can't move anywhere without a job, but people do it all the time! Money talks and so when you have enough saved up to cover many months of rent, most private owners and corporations just might work something out.
Individuals and businesses know that not everyone is going to have a job, but still need a place to stay. Others are no longer working for one reason or another ie.) retirement. But not having a job now, or ever, will not hinder you from renting from someone, somewhere.
Some things you might want to have readily available include:
Copies of your bank statements proving you can pay the rent.
Proof of income sources especially if they are paid monthly ie.) alimony, social security, lottery winnings, etc.
A letter on company letter head with contact information that proves you will begin work at a certain time.
Contact the landlord to find out what more might be needed to assist with your getting a place. Do explain what your situation is if your landlord has reservations about moving you in, most likely someone before you was in a similar situation.
Nicholl McGuire
Individuals and businesses know that not everyone is going to have a job, but still need a place to stay. Others are no longer working for one reason or another ie.) retirement. But not having a job now, or ever, will not hinder you from renting from someone, somewhere.
Some things you might want to have readily available include:
Copies of your bank statements proving you can pay the rent.
Proof of income sources especially if they are paid monthly ie.) alimony, social security, lottery winnings, etc.
A letter on company letter head with contact information that proves you will begin work at a certain time.
Contact the landlord to find out what more might be needed to assist with your getting a place. Do explain what your situation is if your landlord has reservations about moving you in, most likely someone before you was in a similar situation.
Nicholl McGuire
Wednesday
Still Have Problems in Your Rental Residence and Landlord has Done Nothing?
For whatever reason, a landlord doesn’t always get around to doing what he or she promises. When this happens, a tenant becomes increasingly irritated. The phone calls to the office become frequent, in -person visits become argumentative, and threats start coming in like a flood! It doesn’t have to come to this, but since a landlord isn’t doing what is asked. There are some things tenants can do, but you have to be sure that what you are requesting is affecting your health and/or safety. Check your lease to be certain that the landlord responsibilities are outlined. In some cases, if the information is not stated in the lease contract such as, landlord is responsible for repairing or maintaining XYZ. Then it is up to the tenant to ensure that repairs are made. If something was already damaged before you moved in and the landlord promised to have it fixed and didn’t, yet you moved in anyway, he or she doesn’t have to fix it especially if you have no proof that the promise was made.
Writing a dated letter including things like: details of the problems, when contact was made with the office and the results or lack thereof is essential. Give a reasonable amount of time for the landlord to respond to letter. If there is no response, then escalate the matter. From contacting the owner to making an appointment with your local housing code inspector, you will want to get others involved. You will also need to read your state’s landlord tenant handbook to find out if you are able to do any of the following. Each option comes with a risk. A landlord can sue for rent payments, keep the security deposit, your credit history might be negatively impacted, and other issues might result if you can’t prove that your unit was inhabitable, affected your health or safety, or the landlord told you he or she would take care of repairs, but didn’t. You also don’t want to hold back all of your rent and avoid paying, damage the unit intentionally or try to fix things yourself without having proper knowledge, or do other similar things out of anger, because these actions might look like you were being unreasonable and acted in spite if you should go to court. The following are your options:
1. Repair and deduct a portion of rent.
Notify your landlord in writing BEFORE you have repairs made, await a response. State in your correspondence you will be deducting the repair cost from the rent. Keep receipts.
2. Abandon the rental.
You can move out the unit, but once again you will have to let your landlord know you will be vacating in 30 days.
3. Set up an escrow account.
You may withhold about 25% of the rent and put the rest in the account until repairs are made. However, do notify the landlord this is your intent and again await a response.
Learn more about your tenant rights by putting “tenant landlord rights” and include your state.
Nicholl McGuire maintains and contributes to other blogs as well. See Laboring to Love an Abusive Mate http://laboringtoloveanabusivemate.blogspot.com and a blog for families with mixed age groups from babies to teens http://parentsbabieschildren.blogspot.com
Writing a dated letter including things like: details of the problems, when contact was made with the office and the results or lack thereof is essential. Give a reasonable amount of time for the landlord to respond to letter. If there is no response, then escalate the matter. From contacting the owner to making an appointment with your local housing code inspector, you will want to get others involved. You will also need to read your state’s landlord tenant handbook to find out if you are able to do any of the following. Each option comes with a risk. A landlord can sue for rent payments, keep the security deposit, your credit history might be negatively impacted, and other issues might result if you can’t prove that your unit was inhabitable, affected your health or safety, or the landlord told you he or she would take care of repairs, but didn’t. You also don’t want to hold back all of your rent and avoid paying, damage the unit intentionally or try to fix things yourself without having proper knowledge, or do other similar things out of anger, because these actions might look like you were being unreasonable and acted in spite if you should go to court. The following are your options:
1. Repair and deduct a portion of rent.
Notify your landlord in writing BEFORE you have repairs made, await a response. State in your correspondence you will be deducting the repair cost from the rent. Keep receipts.
2. Abandon the rental.
You can move out the unit, but once again you will have to let your landlord know you will be vacating in 30 days.
3. Set up an escrow account.
You may withhold about 25% of the rent and put the rest in the account until repairs are made. However, do notify the landlord this is your intent and again await a response.
Learn more about your tenant rights by putting “tenant landlord rights” and include your state.
Nicholl McGuire maintains and contributes to other blogs as well. See Laboring to Love an Abusive Mate http://laboringtoloveanabusivemate.blogspot.com and a blog for families with mixed age groups from babies to teens http://parentsbabieschildren.blogspot.com
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