Tag Archives: apartment search

Tips for the First Time Renters

May 30, 2012 Jonathan Clark

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So you have made your mind, now you will do it, you will finally move in the first apartment. You are dreaming of this moment your whole life. You know what furniture you want, and what color walls will be, all details about the first major party WAIT! Prior to you get very comfortable with the new found freedom, beware. It is the real life and some late rent payments will damage your credit highly. Have the huge party & the police may come. Ensure your first experience on your own is the good one & take advice from, maybe, some people who have learned in a hard way.

Budget

Experts suggest, while you are searching for the place, rent must be not over 25 to 30% of the annual wages. Though you may fall in love with 2 bedroom luxury apartment in downtown high rise, you will probably not afford this. The eviction may mar your credit rank report and is seen as the big black “X” for other potential landlords. So, take a close look at the income after taxes & subtract all your expenses. Include household supplies, food, cell, phone, car insurance, car payment, credit card bills, parking fees, cleaners, clothing, internet, gas, school loans, healthcare, and entertainment. So, what you have actually left is what you can afford for the new place. Remember that this total may have to include rent & any extra services, like water, electricity, natural gas, garbage pickup and cable if it isn’t included in rent. Ensure to ask the landlord to give in writing what is actually covered in the rent & what is not.

Think About Deposits

Not just will you want to afford the deposit on apartment itself however you may also have to pay the fee for having your electricity to turned on, cable started, phone hooked up, etc. Security deposit is often equal to a month’s rent and other deposits may range from $25 – $100. In case, you are moving in middle of a month you might need to pay for remainder of that particularly month’s rent and first full month’s rent prior to you are allowed to move. Again, ensure that you are planning ahead of time prior to you sign a lease & move in.

Make use of credit cards in complete moderation

Let us face this, we have heard many times from many people we must take all the credit cards & shred them. And nothing good may come to have this around. In case, you do not have any money, then don’t spend money. WRONG! To have credit cards & pay off all your debt in the reasonable period of time can just strengthen the credit report. To establish credit, you require credit. We have to be real, there are one time in everybody’s life when you want, and I mean, want, the credit card. So, don’t worry about using this. When you use the credit cards, ensure you pay the debt down & avoid carrying the balance for more than 3 months.

Apartment

Find An Apartment Online with These Six Easy Tips

February 3, 2012 Jonathan Clark

Gone are the days of finding an apartment by solely searching phone books and classified ads in the newspaper. The internet has opened a whole new method of finding the perfect apartment. Multiple websites exist to aid in a search for the right apartment for anyone.

1. www.apartments.com

The oldest player in online apartment searching. Virtually every town in America is listed on this website. Prospective renters are able to search by location and apartment size. Amenities and public transportation nearby are listed within the search. Photos of apartments and the complex are available for viewing before going to an onsite look at the apartment. An iPhone application is built into the website to help renters find what they are seeking.

2. www.myapartmentmap.com

This website is a fabulous tool for anyone looking to find an apartment online. Renters are able to narrow down a search by pet friendly apartments or military housing. Potential renters are able to search by city, state or zip code. College students have the ability to input the name of their college to discover if there are any available rentals near the college. This handy site will email new listings that match a criteria set by the apartment hunter.

3. www.hotpads.com

This website offers a unique approach to apartment hunting. Users are able to enter search criteria and receive results tailored to their search. Heat maps are available to show renters what others are paying in the area for comparable rentals. These heat maps have the ability to indicate age ranges and income brackets of an area. Renters are able to find available sublets and potential roommates on the website. Hotpads also lists homes for sale and foreclosures in the area.

4. www.craigslist.org

Craigslist is a great website to find apartments not owned by a management company. Potential renters will be able to find a huge variety of rental listings in the area of their choice on Craigslist. Homes for rent are available on Craigslist for the person who desires to rent a house instead of an apartment. Sublet and roommates are able to be found with a quick search on the site

5. www.lyoncommunities.com

Similar to local online classifieds, this website offers a comprehensive list of apartment communities for a wide range of areas from apartments in Georgia to Orange County, CA apartments. You will have the opportunity to view a wide range of floorplans, pricing options, monthly rental specials and can even submit an application online.

6. Local Online Classifieds

Renters should not neglect to search local online classified ads. Large cities often have websites offering classified ads to residents of the area. A quick search online will help a renter locate these sites. The majority of newspapers offer their classified ads online. Performing a search on a newspaper website may help a renter find an apartment that is not listed on any of the typical online apartment websites. Some property owners prefer to utilize newspaper ads only. Doing a search through the newspaper will guarantee the renter is not missing out on any hidden gems.

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Apartment Search: Finding a Pet-Friendly Apartment

January 21, 2012 Jonathan Clark 2 Comments

Hunting for a pet friendly apartment is an experience that requires patience when it involves finding one that welcomes pets. A pet owner needs to know the rules of the lease contract, and be willing to abide by them, before settling on a few choices for final consideration.

The first rule on finding an apartment, if a person is a pet owner, is to narrow one’s search to those apartments that have a pet policy, not one in which the manager says, “Well, it depends.” There is too much room for subjective decisions in this situation. If allowed at all, the pet may be a point of contention with the manager later. Apartment locating services can perform this service since pet policies are high on the list of questions apartment hunters have.

One of the mistakes apartment hunters make is to decide upon a place where they want to live and then keep their fingers crossed that their pets will be allowed to move in as well. They are often disappointed and have to make a decision about whether to give their pets up for adoption or find a different apartment.

Many apartment managers have a pet policy that they share in their advertisements, but many others do not mention such a policy. It should never be assumed that their failure to mention it means that pets are acceptable. It is very disappointing to find out after touring the property that pets are forbidden.

After an apartment shopper has a list of places to tour, he should visit them with his pet in mind as well as himself. For example, forcing an older dog with hip problems to climb stairs for several walks per day will cause both the dog and his keeper to enjoy their new home less.

Other things to consider while touring a list of possible new apartments are walking areas and pet-friendliness in the apartment community. If an apartment complex has nothing but a parking lot, concrete walkways, and no areas where the pet can sit in a sunny window, it is not particularly pet-friendly.

On the other hand, an apartment complex that has dog-walking areas, a small fenced-in patio, and other friendly pet owners who live in the community, may be a renter’s delight.

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