Apartment Search

Are you in the market for a new apartment? Here are some helpful hints to aid your apartment search and get you into your ideal rental.

Develop an Apartment Search Plan

Before you can find what you want, you need to know what you want. So the first step in any apartment search is to make a list of exactly what you want in a new apartment home. Include a column for must-haves like number of bedrooms and other amenities you can't live without (perhaps a dishwasher and a laundry area). Next, list all the things that you'd really like to have, but could live without if you had to. This list might include things like a fireplace, a swimming pool and so on.

Limit the Financial Scope of Your Apartment Search

Now it's time to assess your budget. Determine how much you can afford to spend on rent every month. Most experts advise you not to spend more than 25 percent of your salary on rent, though this can be difficult for people who are living in large urban areas (especially those who are just getting their careers off the ground). That said, do try to limit your search to those apartments with a rent that is no more than 30 percent of your salary. If you really love that pricier place, you might want to find a way to make do.

Tips for Making Contact With Apartment Landlords 

Now that you’ve defined your search and crunched the numbers, it's time to start hunting. Check out online listings. Go visit the neighborhood where you want to live. Before you call any landlords, get an idea of the going rate for rentals in that area. You also need to make sure you have everything you need before you contact any landlords. Many landlords will do a credit check, and some will even want to see evidence that you get paid on a regular basis. After all, they have a vested interest in making sure that rent is paid on time.

After you’ve assembled all the appropriate materials, you can start calling up landlords and asking for a site visit. Try to schedule these during daylight hours so you can get a good idea about the general condition of the outside of the building, as well as the inside. Don't limit your look to the daylight hours. Take some time after (or before) the site visit to drive by the place at night. Everything changes once the sun is down. There might be a bar nearby that creates a lot of (noisy) foot traffic or some other factor that might turn you off.

Don't just rent the first place you view, even if you love it. Tell the landlord you've got a couple others to check out, and then do it! There might be something even better (and possibly cheaper) on the next block.