| By Alan Henry Find the Perfect Apartment for You by Asking the Right Questions
Photo by Charleston's TheDigitel. Step 1: Do Your Research to Find Apartments Worth VisitingFinding the right apartment for you is a topic we've tackled several times, and we've even discussed some great tools to help you find rentals that are in your price range and in your preferred neighborhoods. We particularly like Padmapper and Apartments.com, both of which do a great job of helping you narrow your search to neighborhoods and communities you're interested in, filter based on price and amenities, and get regular updates when availability changes. That said, finding a great apartment to visit is only half of the battle—and in many cases can be the easiest part of the process. Looking at promotional photos and Craigslist snapshots is only part of the job. Once you've used these tools to narrow down your list of candidates, it's time to go see the units in person, and that's where the real challenge begins. Step 2: Check Out the Neighborhood Before Scheduling a Visit with the Property OwnerIf you're moving to an area you already know or that's close to where you live now, you have the luxury of driving through or visiting the area before you schedule an appointment to see the property with the owner. Check out the community and see if the amenities match up with what you're looking for. If you enjoy eating out and nightlife, make sure you're not moving to a sleepy cul de sac far away from the action. If you want a quiet neighborhood where your children can play, a house rental along a major road may be affordable and look good on paper, but isn't the best option. Spend some time in the neighborhood if you can. If it's a thriving community with shops and restaurants, stop in to a local cafe for a bite to eat, and chat up a friendly-looking employee. Let them know you're moving into the area and ask them what they think of the community. Sometimes they may not live there themselves, but in many cases you'll get someone who's willing to offer you some insight into what the neighborhood is really like. If you can, stick around until after-hours, or come back late in the evening and drive around. After the sun sets, you'll get a real feel for whether the neighborhood is safe at night, is as quiet (or as lively) as you hoped, or is somewhere you'd like to come home to after a long day of work. Photo by Pamela J. Eisenberg. Step 3: Schedule Your First Visit with The Property OwnerDepending on the rental market in your area, you may not have much time to waste when it comes to scheduling visits. When I gave up an apartment in the suburbs for a unit in the heart of the city, I learned quickly that the rental market in my city's popular neighborhoods is brutal—apartments that were open and available on Monday could have a tenant moving in by Wednesday, and that's even if you scheduled a viewing on Tuesday. Don't waste time, but don't feel rushed either - new units come on the market regularly. Call the landlord or property owner and ask them when they can meet with you, and if there are any regular tours scheduled or applications already in on the unit. This last bit is important—you don't want to waste your time or take off work to go visit a unit where there's already an application unless you know you have to see it. Make sure you find out from the landlord how popular their property is and how likely it will be that the unit will be gone before you even get there. With Craigslist, a number of landlords prefer to do business over email, or schedule group open houses. That's fine, but try to get them on the phone whenever possible. Speaking to someone gives you the opportunity to make your case and get immediate feedback, while email can get lost or be ignored for days on end. Once your visit is scheduled, it's time to make a list of questions you want answered while you tour the unit. Step 4: Show Up to Your First Viewing with Questions In-HandYour first visit to an apartment may be your last one before you submit an application, if the unit is in high demand. Don't waste the opportunity to ask your future landlord as many questions about the property as possible. Ideally, you'll show up armed with the basics, and you'll just need to confirm them with the property owner or landlord. You'll already know how large the unit is, how much it will cost you, whether there's parking (assigned or not), and how far you are to your job, major roads, amenities, or mass transit. These are all things you can look up on the internet before you go, don't waste much time during your visit with them unless you need to confirm them. Here are a few more probing questions to help you get below the surface. Photo by Matt Biddulph.
If you're renting from a management company that handles multiple units in the property, you can take some of these questions further, and ask about the types of maintenance requests they get, how often they get them, and what modifications they're willing to make to a unit upon request. Apartment Ratings has a great list of questions for landlords as well, although they're largely directed to management companies, not individual landlords or property owners who may wind up being your upstairs neighbors. Just remember, if you get concessions or any agreements as a result of the questions, make sure to get them in writing when it comes time to get a lease drawn up. Step 5: Talk to Others in The Community for Their OpinionsOne of the best ways to find out more about a community before moving in is to talk to other people who already live there. You don't have to be a creeper, but sit out front of the building with a cup of coffee or your smartphone, and casually ask a passer by if they live in the are or in the building you're interested in. Be open with the fact that you're considering moving into the place, and you'd like to know what they think of the community, landlord, or management company. Most people, as long as you're nice about it and open with the fact that you'd appreciate their help, are willing to lend you their opinion. Ask them specific questions that don't waste their time, like how long they've lived there, and whether they've had any serious maintenance, pest, or management problems, or if there's anything they had addressed right after they moved in that they wished they had known about earlier. We've discussed how to make sure you find a decent landlord before, but ask others what they think of the landlord as well. Ask them if they plan to renew their lease or continue living in the community, and ask them if they have any advice for someone who's just now looking at apartments or homes in their area. If you have more time, ask them if they looked at any other buildings or communities in the neighborhood as well, or if there's anything they learned after living there for a while that they wish they could have found out earlier. For example, you won't know until you've lived in an apartment for a few weeks that the garbage trucks are particularly noisy on Tuesdays, or that a huge cargo train slowly rolls by the back of the complex every three weeks. There's a great post and comment thread about these types of things over at Apartment Therapy, and it's good reading for anyone looking at homes. Apartment hunting is something of a universal experience. In most cases, the people you meet will be willing to lend their opinions and experiences, as long as you ask the right questions. Photo by Kevin Tostado. Step 6: When You're Ready to Sign, Go Over Your Lease CarefullyWhen I asked Bruce Dachis, our very own Adam Dachis' father and a property owner and landlord himself, what he hears from his tenants when they complain "I wish I had known that before I moved in," he explained that a lot of people fail to do two things that would protect them when they're shopping for a new place and interviewing potential landlords—two things that any reasonable and honest landlord should never have a problem with you doing:
He reiterated the importance of some of the questions above, especially with regard to maintenance requests, response times, and whether you'll be responsible for vetting a contractor or repair-person or they will. Make sure you're aware of any fees that the landlord may not discuss until the last minute, like move-in/out fees, parking fees, or anything else. He also explained that depending on the nature of the rental market, you may have to take what you can get and some landlords will be less inclined to make accommodations for you, but you should always ask the questions and decide for yourself where you're willing to compromise. When you do sign the lease, make sure to ask any lingering questions you may have before handing over your copy, and if there are any last minute agreements you come to, make sure you get them—and everything else—in writing as an update or addendum to your lease. Remember, you never know what you can get until you ask for it, and until you have it in writing, you have no proof you actually got anything you asked for. Photo by Grasa Victoria/shutterstock. Step 7: Enjoy Your New HomeThe key to finding and landing the perfect home is part research and good timing, but also largely a matter of asking the right questions before you visit, when you visit, after you visit, and when you sign the lease. Make sure you're as well informed as possible and that you go into your new home with both eyes open to what you're getting into. When you've finished your move and you're sleeping in your own bed in your new home, you may still encounter a few surprises, but hopefully it's nothing significant enough that you wished you had asked about before you moved in. Do you have any questions that you make sure to ask when touring a potential apartment or house? Any tips to make sure you're not blindsided by the lease or some other issue that may be lurking beneath the surface? Share your tips and house hunting suggestions in the comments below. Bruce Dachis owns multiple rental properties and has been on both sides of the landlord/tenant negotiating table. He graciously offered his experience for this article, and we thank him. You can reach Alan Henry, the author of this post, at alan@lifehacker.com, or better yet, follow him on Twitter or Google+. 
| November 25th, 2011 Top Stories |
Searching for a new apartment can be fun. The thrill of finding listings, and choosing candidates based on photos, maps, and amenities can be enjoyable, and there are plenty of tools to make the search easy. The real trouble starts when it's time to tour a prospective home, meet the landlord, and learn a little about the neighborhood. This is where you have to put on your detective's hat and start asking questions. Here's what you should find out before you sign a lease. 
