The way you pay your rent varies depending on the landlord’s preferences. Sometimes it’s as simple as sending a check in the mail. But some landlords support online payments or can set up automatic withdrawals so you don’t have to remember the due date. Be sure to reference your lease or ask your landlord how they prefer to receive rent before it comes due.
Landlords are allowed to raise the rent once the lease has expired. If you decide to stay in the same apartment next year, you should read your new lease carefully and make sure the rates haven’t gone up. If they have, see if you can negotiate with your landlord. If you are renting a month-to-month apartment, then rent increases are more likely to occur. In this case, landlords can raise the rent every month if they wish. But it’s important to note that many states require a 30 day notice before the rent is officially raised. This will give you time to find a new place if you cannot afford the new rent price.
The security deposit is a set amount of money that the landlord takes from you as collateral for the structural integrity and cleanliness of the house. In other words, this money is set aside by the landlord to inspire tenants to take good care of their rental property, and if you don’t, it gives them the opportunity to recoup those losses.
If you keep the house in good condition and don’t inflict any damages on the property, then you will get your security deposit back at the end of your lease. To ensure that there are no misunderstandings between you and the landlord, be sure to take inventory of any wear-and-tear you see when you move in, preferably via photo. This way no pre-existing damages can be mistakenly blamed on you and you can get your security deposit returned fair and square. Generally, landlords are required to return the security deposit 30 days after the lease ends.
Utilities are the basics you need any housing unit: electricity, heat, water, trash pickup. Sometimes these bills are included in your rent payment and are handled by your landlord, but other times the tenant directly receives the bill. Be sure to ask your landlord about utilities before signing the lease so you know what you’ll be expected to pay for.
It is very important to know the difference between these two terms, as they will determine how long you’ll stay at a place and sometimes even the rent price. A fixed-term lease is an agreement that states the tenant will remain in the apartment or home for a pre-determined amount of time — usually a year. Month-to-month leases also tend to have higher rent prices because the landlord is not guaranteed income for the next month. Unless you are in a precarious or time-sensitive situation, it’s often a better financial call to go with the fixed-term lease.
Your right to know what happened in a house or apartment before you rented it — called disclosure laws — varies depending on what state and area you reside in. Some areas require landlords to fully disclose, while other areas just require disclosure of violent deaths. Many areas have an expiration date on event disclosure. In other words, if someone committed suicide in your home five years ago, then a landlord might not be required to disclose. If you are concerned about the previous tenants of your apartment or other tenants in your building, your best bet would be to speak to the neighbors or do a little research in the local records.
Be sure to know the size of your furniture before going to look at apartments. It might feel a bit odd, but bringing a tape measure to an apartment tour can be extremely useful. Jot down the measurements of certain walls and openings, and compare the with the furniture you plan to bring. If you’re unable to measure the dimensions of the apartment you’re looking at, ask the landlord for some measurements. After all, new furniture can be a bit pricey, so you want to make sure that you get an apartment that will accommodate the items you already have.
Making simple aesthetic changes, like swapping furniture, is not a problem (unless you rented a furnished unit). But if you want to make changes to the apartment itself — like painting or mounting some shelves on the wall — you will need to check the terms of your lease. Many landlords have a clause in the lease requiring written permission, so even if you receive verbal permission from your landlord, be sure to cover your butt and get a written document specifically telling you what you can and cannot do.
Foregoing landlord permission can leave you with a financial mess at the end of the lease term if you aren’t able to reverse all of the changes. It’s much easier to be straightforward with your landlord and simply ask what kind of changes you’re allowed to make.
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