It is a common thing for people to move from one house to another, and it is also inevitable. But, sometimes the situation gets more complicated: you want to move out of your parents’ home but can’t move out on your own; or even worse: you need to move immediately due to some issues with roommates or neighbours; or last minute—you lost your job and don’t have time to find a new apartment.
In such cases like these, there are some important things that need checking before moving into an apartment. The following list will help you organize the logistics and keep everything under control no matter what’s going on in your life at the moment.
Here is a list of things you always check before entering an apartment:
1. Ask the neighbours how they like their current neighbours. A good way to do that is by knocking on your neighbours’ doors and asking them if they mind answering some general questions you have about the apartment and the building where it’s located.
2. Make sure there’s a mailbox in front of the apartment for this address; maybe even check if the mail was recently delivered to it (in case someone else is still using it). You can ask your future roommates/landlord, or go down to the closest post office and ask there!
3. Check whether dryers are provided by landlords, etc.: make sure you’ll have access to one before moving in—if not, don’t: most laundromats have a wash-and-fold service. Also, you might have to pay a small fee for use of a dryer or do not have access at all.
4. Make sure there’s a parking space for your car—if there is no parking garage available and you’re going to park on the street, check how much it’ll cost per hour/day/month and whether or not it’s allowed to park overnight. You can also ask neighbours about this information, as well as the local police station where you could enquire if they don’t know about it already!
5 . When moving in make sure everything is included in the place: from appliances to linens and from dishes to furniture; otherwise, be prepared that your security deposit will be used for purchasing these things.
6. Almost every apartment building has an elevator; however, you should check whether it works and if there’s a maximum weight limit (for passengers). If there is anything wrong with the elevator, it might not get repaired any time soon—just to let you know ahead of time!
7. You can contact your local police department to get information about crime rates in the area or ask neighbours about this topic when you meet them. Also, one way to find out whether the neighbourhood is safe or not is by checking for bars on windows in multiple-storey buildings. If they are present, chances are the neighbourhood isn’t very popular, i.e., less secure… . Ask yourself how far away you’d like to be from the apartment building in case of an emergency.
8. Flooding is possible when it rains heavily—that much we know, but you should check whether any authorities (local or national) have issued a warning about them and what precautions you should take before moving into the apartment. It’s also good to find out what time the high tide will occur and plan your days accordingly; maybe leave some essentials at a friend’s home in case you need to run away!
9. Check with neighbours how often hoarding happens around that part of town: hoarders can cause lots of damage but also pose danger to other people passing by… Sometimes they might even abandon their entire household, so it’s better not to risk staying in an apartment that might get cluttered any minute.
10. Ask your future roommates/landlord how often garbage is collected by the authorities in the area and what days they usually pick up rubbish from each household. Also, check where to place bags with laundry after it’s been washed so they don’t stink up your apartment when you open a bag to put in a load of wet clothes!
11 . It’s good to find out if there are any upcoming renovations in the building or adjacent areas: maybe a construction company will move into a neighbourhood and start working on their projects without being too noisy for local residents. If that happens, ask neighbours what time work will begin and end during a day so that you can plan activities accordingly (i.e., not on the days when the noise will be too loud to handle).
12 . Check out some photos of what your neighbourhood looks like at night by searching for images with ” location name + night ” in Google Images or Pinterest (or any other search engine of your choice). This way, you’ll get a general idea about the lighting situation so that you don’t have any unpleasant surprises! If there are multiple street lights per block, it’s good—but if one single light covers an entire area, it might be rather dark at nighttime.
13 . When moving in make sure everything is included in the place: from appliances to linens and from dishes to furniture; otherwise, be prepared that your security deposit will be used for purchasing these things.
14 . Almost every apartment building has an elevator; however, you should check whether it works and if there’s a maximum weight limit (for passengers). If there is anything wrong with the elevator, it might not get repaired any time soon—just to let you know ahead of time!
15 . You can contact your local police department to get information about crime rates in the area or ask neighbours about this topic when you meet them. Also, one way to find out whether the neighbourhood is safe or not is by checking for bars on windows in multiple-storey buildings. If they are present, chances are the neighbourhood isn’t very popular, i.e., less secure… . Ask yourself how far away you’d like to be from the apartment building in case of an emergency.
16 . Flooding is possible when it rains heavily—that much we know, but you should check whether any authorities (local or national) have issued a warning about them and what precautions you should take before moving into the apartment. It’s also good to find out what time the high tide will occur and plan your days accordingly; maybe leave some essentials at a friend’s home in case you need to run away!
17 . Check with neighbours how often hoarding happens around that part of town: hoarders can cause lots of damage but also pose danger to other people passing by… Sometimes they might even abandon their entire household, so it’s better not to risk staying in an apartment that might get cluttered any minute.
18 . Ask your future roommates/landlord how often garbage is collected by the authorities in the area and what days they usually pick up rubbish from each household. Also, check where to place bags with laundry after it’s been washed so they don’t stink up your apartment when you open a bag to put in a load of wet clothes!
19 . It’s good to find out if there are any upcoming renovations in the building or adjacent areas: maybe a construction company will move into a neighbourhood and start working on their projects without being too noisy for local residents. If that happens, ask neighbours what time work will begin and end during a day so that you can plan activities accordingly (i.e., not on the days when the noise will be too loud to handle).
20 . When checking out the apartment, ask yourself whether you feel comfortable living there. Do you like how it looks? Can you see yourself cooking in the kitchen or having a walk on your own balcony? Don’t forget to check for any small details that would annoy a person staying a long time: a window right next to your bed might not let sunlight come inside at all so make sure it isn’t something major before moving into an apartment rife with inconveniences!
21 . If some appliances don’t work properly or need some repairs, inform your landlord as soon as possible since those things could lead to some issues later on if they’re ignored. Again, these costs might get tacked on to your security deposit so it’s better to be safe than sorry!
22 . Try to visit the apartment during various days of the week and at different times of day: there might be some sound disturbances that are too common for you to notice, but they’re likely more noticeable if they happen every single night.
23 . Check whether there are any major road works taking place near the apartment since noise pollution can become a problem when working hours are extended or work commences at weekends—just something else to keep in mind before moving into an apartment complex!
24 . If you have family living nearby, ask them how often they come over. Chances are this frequency will increase after you’ve moved into an apartment by yourself! It’s good to have some people nearby in case something happens or you feel like talking at three AM on a weekday morning!
25 . You can also find out which school district the apartment is located in (if the renter has children). If they’re planning to send their kids to public schools, ask how far away they are and whether there are any major renovations taking place. A new building might make getting to class more difficult for students!
26 . Make sure you get all of your items checked off this list before signing the lease! It’ll save you lots of time and money if you do it early on instead of realizing only after moving into an apartment that it doesn’t work for you at all.
27 . Enjoy living in your newly-found apartment! Hopefully, you’ll enjoy it as much as I currently do.
28 . If you enjoyed reading this post and would like to see more of this blog in the future, please share with others on social media. Thank you for doing so and I hope that even more, wonderful things will come from this website in the future: stay tuned!
