It is always important to know what to expect when moving into a new apartment.
Start out your search by making an itemized list of what is important to you.
Do you have pets? or plan on having pets? What type of appliances do you want? Is a dishwasher essential? Do you prefer Gas or Electric Stoves? Amenities that you need- swimming pool, excersize room, club house, bike racks, social events Do you need an outdoor private space or is a community courtyard enough? Renovated interior or classic retro? Location- close to downtown, close to public transit, close to freeway access, stores?
You may eventually need to make compromises in order to find a mostly ideal apartment, but it is good to start out aiming high.
You will want to ask a lot of questions and it is often best to have them prewritten down. All too often prospective tenants come in and can’t remember what they wanted to ask. It is also a good idea to keep seperate documentation of the answers to your questions for each property you visit. I recommend taking pictures to remind you of the seperate properties.
Possible questions could be:
What is included in the rent? Utilities, parking, club house passes, etc Are their any additional property fees? Laundry costs, parking, rental rates for pool house reservations Is the apartment cable and phone ready? Who is the service provider? Can I have a satellite dish? Have their been any noise issues? Is there insulation between units? Is the laundry coin op or card? How much? How often are the grounds maintained? What are your maintenance policies if something breaks in the apartment? Pet policy? Additional deposit required? Quiet Hours on the property? Can I hang pictures on the wall?
Never be afraid to ask to see a copy of the lease before renting so that you know what you will be agreeing to at move in. Also, its okay to walk away and think it over before leaving a deposit. The apartment may rent before you can come back, but if there is any hesitation take some time and think it over. You don’t want to be stuck on a year lease in an apartment that isn’t a good fit for you.