Looking for a place to live, for the first time

Recoil42

Getting ready for next year, moving out of residence. So it's my first time looking for a place to live.


General advice? Procedures? What should I be asking, looking for, other than things like whether utilities are included, etc?

Sentry

Recoil42 wrote: »

Getting ready for next year, moving out of residence. So it's my first time looking for a place to live.


General advice? Procedures? What should I be asking, looking for, other than things like whether utilities are included, etc?

Most schools have a service that advises people on moving off campus... you should check and see if such a place exists on your campus and go talk to them. They have lots of good advice on how not to get screwed by landlords.

Cojones

I'm not sure if theres variance but your university should be able to provide advice as to where to find the right fit. It's always sensible to quiz more senior students at your university and ascertain where they lived and where they'd recommend living.

I'm in the same situation at the minute and I'm most concerned about the distance to campus and the security of the premises and its vicinity. Take a walk around any prospective areas and spend a good hour or so making sure that you're not about to go living in a bad neighbourhood.

METAzraeL

If you'll have roommates, you should either know them already or try and check them out beforehand. It's cool to live with new, different people, but bad roomies will fuck your life up. It's probably not something you can help with your first move, but it is something to keep in mind.

Location is important, especially if you have limited means of transportation. Being close to the university is definitely a pro. Dorms can be good for meeting people and acclimating to the area, but if you highly value your privacy then you should look elsewhere.

MegaMan001

Make sure to get a copy of your lease up front. Then bring this to your campus legal department (or possibly the Ombudsman's office). They will tell you if you are about to get screwed.

GET RENTER'S INSURANCE. It is dirt cheap (about 20-30 dollars a month) and it covers damn near everything. There is no better investment one can make when moving out on their own other than renter's insurance.

Kyzen

When you do settle on a place, check and see if it's available on rent.com - tell them that's where you found them, and then go to rent.com and fill out the $100 reward claim. I've done this for the past 2 apartments I moved in to

Shinto

Recoil42 wrote: »

Getting ready for next year, moving out of residence. So it's my first time looking for a place to live.


General advice? Procedures? What should I be asking, looking for, other than things like whether utilities are included, etc?

Apartments are not dorms. If you are loud your neighbors will hate you. Quiet time after ten.

Sentry

Shinto wrote: »

Recoil42 wrote: »

Getting ready for next year, moving out of residence. So it's my first time looking for a place to live.


General advice? Procedures? What should I be asking, looking for, other than things like whether utilities are included, etc?

Apartments are not dorms. If you are loud your neighbors will hate you. Quiet time after ten.

And, if you mess up, you get arrested, not a stern talking to from the RA's.

Kyzen

Shinto wrote: »

Recoil42 wrote: »

Getting ready for next year, moving out of residence. So it's my first time looking for a place to live.


General advice? Procedures? What should I be asking, looking for, other than things like whether utilities are included, etc?

Apartments are not dorms. If you are loud your neighbors will hate you. Quiet time after ten.

True story. If you are going to have a party of sorts, and think it might be even somewhat loud and go somewhat late, leave a note on your neighbors door saying that you're having a party with a few friends, and if it gets too noisy, to call you. Much better than them calling the cops, I know this from experience

If internet is important to you, make sure high speed is available before hand. I almost moved into a place that neither of my cities DSL/Cable providers serviced.

And check out some of the apartment review sites online - take everything with a grain of salt, because I haven't seen many/any positive reviews on any of those sites at all, but if you see the same complaints repeated over an extended period of time, consider it to have some sort of basis in truth.

Entriech

When you're viewing an apartment, aside from obvious physical inspection, check all the faucets, toilets, and pipes to make sure they're in good working order, have adequate pressure, and don't leak. If you're living someplace cold, keep an eye on the heating systems. If you see vents, confirm that heat comes out of them, and figure out where that's controlled from. Look for baseboard electric heaters too. My first apartment I had to run a space heater 3 months of the year, and that only made the 5 feet around my computer bearable to be in. Waking up in the morning and making the run from bed to shower in close to freezing temperatures was not fun.

solsovly

MegaMan001 wrote: »

Make sure to get a copy of your lease up front. Then bring this to your campus legal department (or possibly the Ombudsman's office). They will tell you if you are about to get screwed.

GET RENTER'S INSURANCE. It is dirt cheap (about 20-30 dollars a month) and it covers damn near everything. There is no better investment one can make when moving out on their own other than renter's insurance.

Seriously, this is important. Especially if you are gonna have any nice things in your home. I used to sell renters insurance, I've quoted policies that were $60 an entire YEAR for over $20,000 protection and a very low deductable. Someone college age might not get such a good rate (especially around college towns) but its a very worthwhile investment.