Looking for an apartment ?
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Utilities included usually means the landlord pays the utilities, but depending on how high your rent is you're probably paying for them anyways.1
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Oh so either way I’m laying them? Lol and the rent is pretty high but they include cable ,water,electric,sewage too0
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Be careful, sometimes there may be a cap on utilities and if you go over, you have to pay the difference. Definitely ask, but yes, usually utilities included is a good thing. Less headache IMO0
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Did you pay utilities at your last apartment?0
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I am a landlord and I do not pay any utilities. Also I am only responsible for repairs that are $200 and over0
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I am a landlord and I do not pay any utilities. Also I am only responsible for repairs that are $200 and over
My buddy owns an apartment building and he said that a tenant once called him because a light bulb went out. LoL!
He has told me other stories that where not as funny though. One couple got housing assistance for years and years so the state mailed him their rent check directly every month. He never had a problem and the state paid every month on the 1st without issue so he didn't mind.
Well they lost their funding somehow ( he doesn't know how, he wasn't told that part of the story) and they had to begin paying their own rent. They where 2 months behind and he told them they had to catch up by paying extra on top of the new rent due on the first of each month. They must've assumed that it meant they could pay whatever whenever they wanted. They would drop off$20 and 50$ at a time. Well the first of the month came rolling around again and he told them they owed $1500 for the previous months plus the new month that began that day which was 800$. They said " no we just paid you $50!"
They really thought that they didn't owe any more because they where making payments on the past amount owed. I guess they didn't think they where responsible for the new months rent as well.
He took them to court and they finally got removed but he said that is the last time he would try to let anyone make payments because it was very clear that people just don't get it or maybe just don't care. At court they said they where going to be homeless with their 7 kids but the judge didn't fall for it thankfully because the landlord brought proof that both worked and still got housing assistance for many many years anyway.2 -
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So many landlords here. You guys are kind of freaking me out. I thought you were just regular people not *kitten* landlords. I would never admit to being one in mixed company.
I had a suspicion that you where actually jin le Wang's landlord this entire time! I hope they found the girl who slashed his tires.1 -
I think if you have rented a similar size place in the same area, you would be able to make a pretty good estimate on whether the rent is a good deal or not with utilities included (based on your past utility bills + rent).
In my area, renters almost always pay for water, trash and sewage in addition to the bigger utilities like gas and electric. It is rare (near me) to have utilities included. I rented one place for 3 months during my divorce that included all utilities, cable & internet, but it was also fully furnished and considered an "executive apartment" so it was generally not a long-term residence for anyone and most people staying there were temporary and had homes elsewhere. It was perfect for a short-term space while selling a house and taking care of all that. I quickly ran the math on what I'd paid for utilities (and wireless internet) for a 1600 sq ft modest house and the apartment was like 1000 sq ft so the amount was less, but not drastically less. It seemed completely fair to me.
Once in the past, I found a duplex where they included lawncare (just regular mowing and trimming branches on trees after storms) and I learned even that was rare for my area. Most places in my area if it is not an apartment (renting a house or duplex) you have to mow your own yard. I find that so weird because when I was in college and renting, sometimes moving from apartment to duplex I sure as heck wasn't going to run out & buy my own lawnmower! I think of that as homeowner stuff and actually, I don't even do that now as a homeowner (we just pay a guy and it's super cheap anyway).
BTW I think all the horror stories about bad tenants pretty much happen to every landlord. I know people with low end properties renting to whoever has cash and people with extremely nice (expensive for our area) properties who run extensive background checks & request letters of reference and huge deposits. Either type...ALL of them have these crazy horror stories! I know one guy who rents nice 3- and 4-bedroom houses to mostly professional people who are in the area on 1 yr contracts and it's not unusual for them to take all the light bulbs & sometimes closet shelving that was installed beforehand, or the plates from light switches and outlets! So weird...after hearing those stories, I kind of understand why as a renter I'd get back most or all of my deposit even with a couple stains in the carpet or a scratched hallway wall!
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OP, I would suggest you try to speak to as many people in ur prospective neighborhood to find out what most people are paying. All of us on here live in different areas where the cost of living varies. Good luck on your apt search!0
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Will_Workout_for_food wrote: »One of my old tenants didnt tell us about a leak in the house. We covered heat and water. I was wondering why the water bill was so high. This went on for months. We confronted them and they said they knew and just didnt tell us. No real reason why. We figured they were a bunch of *kitten* so we told them we are upping the rent by 5% ( we havnt raised their rents in like 2 years and ur allowed to raise it yearly ) and they got pissed and decided go squat and not pay rent for 3 months. so they lived here rent free cause thats the grace period tenants have to look for a new apt before legally being able to be kicked out. Hate being a landlord honestly
It's well known among the common, working, wage earning folk - whose rent isn't subsidized by government handouts - that landlords are very prone to raising the rent on tenants who complain about anything, especially repairs. Of course they aren't going to tell you this because they want you to like them. That's why they didn't tell you about the leak, because they were afraid you'd raise the rent and that's exactly what you did. If they have no choice but to pay market rent, which you dictate. And they are completely at your mercy. All landlords know this and without question have the upper hand in all negotiations, even though they all say they hate landlording.
When a landlord visits his or her rental property every 10 weeks, after giving proper advanced notice to the tenants which is applicable by law, the landlord can inspect the premises and communicate with the tenants. Repairs can be made automatically before they turn into a problem, if the landlord is so inclined to be gracious enough to make those repairs out of respect for their tenants - even it's just replacing a doorknob that fell off, mending a cracked window that was like that before the tenant moved in, snaking a drain that drano won't unclog, or replacing the hinges on a cupboard that's hanging loose. It isn't customary with landlords to do it this way, because it's dollars they aren't willing to spend and time they aren't willing to bother with.
Occasionally they hire property management companies to make quarterly inspections of the units for them, but these companies are notoriously slimy when dealing with working class tenants. They typically don't give tenants proper notice before inspection, blame tenants for repairs that they shouldn't be blamed for. And of course, use any attention that has to be paid to keep a unit in good working order as an excuse to hike the rent on some waitress or retail employee or administrative filing clerk or non-union construction worker to make way for a university student whose well-to-do parents pay the rent or a Section 8 tenant who only has to come with a third of the rent and the government pays the rest. Which is why landlords hike up Section 8 rents as high as they can possibly go according to the "market" statistics and trends. This makes it increasingly impossible for honest, working class renters with good references - who can't afford to buy and don't qualify for Section 8 - to be able to rent at all unless they're living with 6 other people in a 2 bedroom apartment who all chip in to pay an unjustly inflated rent that exploits the working poor who pay their own way.
This is really biased and nonsense. First off, I did not come out of the womb some privileged *kitten* that got handed all kinds of properties and real estate to rent out and screw the common man. I was poor as dirt and have worked my *kitten* off my whole life, to change my life. I grew up in rented projects, and rented for many years as an adult, so I know damn well both sides of the story. There are just as many scummy tenants as their are landlords, and some tenants actully have mire money than the landlord. The bottom line is I offer my house or building to be someone else's home. I expect them to take care of it and have pride in it. I expect nothing less. There also comes a certain responsibility in maintaining a dwelling you live in to a certain degree. I am not a hotel and I don't offer room service. I will not be there to change light bulbs or do nonsense things that the renter can and should do for themselves. It's about being accountable for yourself. I do not coddle people, I offer a nice place to live....that's it. And prices go up, just like everything in life, so as the cost of owning the property may increase so will the rent. That's just a fact of life and we all need to deal with it. I will make sure my rental properties are well maintained and in return I expect them to stay that way. If I rent to someone with a lower income I don't expect them to treat my place with any less respect than if I lived there. And if I rent to someone with a higher income I don't expect to be on call at their every whim. It's a misconception that landlords are rich fat cats trying to milk the lower class. That stereotype infuriates me. Every goddamn renter I have has is living in a FAR better place than I came from, and everyone of them have the responsibility of taking care of their own day to day maintenance. I think I allow them to be prideful of where they live. I know that's all I wanted when I was renting.11 -
Great response bojack. Not all landlords are evil. Tons of regional differences, too.
Sort of unrelated, but the thing that annoys me most is peers who decide to rent out properties when they are not equipped, financially or otherwise, to handle the role. Usually people who got stuck with their starter house that didn't sell and moved into a bigger place. Then they rent out the smaller/older property hoping to make a buck and can't really afford to do the necessary upkeep & repairs, and don't know how to screen and handle their tenants. Every time I hear stories about this I just roll my eyes. I guess because I've had other family & friends who took it very seriously and were well-prepared. It's not as simple as "Oh I'll find someone to rent to, so I can pay the payments plus make a few hundred on my old place! With no effort from me, ever. Genius!"3 -
Will_Workout_for_food wrote: »One of my old tenants didnt tell us about a leak in the house. We covered heat and water. I was wondering why the water bill was so high. This went on for months. We confronted them and they said they knew and just didnt tell us. No real reason why. We figured they were a bunch of *kitten* so we told them we are upping the rent by 5% ( we havnt raised their rents in like 2 years and ur allowed to raise it yearly ) and they got pissed and decided go squat and not pay rent for 3 months. so they lived here rent free cause thats the grace period tenants have to look for a new apt before legally being able to be kicked out. Hate being a landlord honestly
It's well known among the common, working, wage earning folk - whose rent isn't subsidized by government handouts - that landlords are very prone to raising the rent on tenants who complain about anything, especially repairs. Of course they aren't going to tell you this because they want you to like them. That's why they didn't tell you about the leak, because they were afraid you'd raise the rent and that's exactly what you did. If they have no choice but to pay market rent, which you dictate. And they are completely at your mercy. All landlords know this and without question have the upper hand in all negotiations, even though they all say they hate landlording.
When a landlord visits his or her rental property every 10 weeks, after giving proper advanced notice to the tenants which is applicable by law, the landlord can inspect the premises and communicate with the tenants. Repairs can be made automatically before they turn into a problem, if the landlord is so inclined to be gracious enough to make those repairs out of respect for their tenants - even it's just replacing a doorknob that fell off, mending a cracked window that was like that before the tenant moved in, snaking a drain that drano won't unclog, or replacing the hinges on a cupboard that's hanging loose. It isn't customary with landlords to do it this way, because it's dollars they aren't willing to spend and time they aren't willing to bother with.
Occasionally they hire property management companies to make quarterly inspections of the units for them, but these companies are notoriously slimy when dealing with working class tenants. They typically don't give tenants proper notice before inspection, blame tenants for repairs that they shouldn't be blamed for. And of course, use any attention that has to be paid to keep a unit in good working order as an excuse to hike the rent on some waitress or retail employee or administrative filing clerk or non-union construction worker to make way for a university student whose well-to-do parents pay the rent or a Section 8 tenant who only has to come with a third of the rent and the government pays the rest. Which is why landlords hike up Section 8 rents as high as they can possibly go according to the "market" statistics and trends. This makes it increasingly impossible for honest, working class renters with good references - who can't afford to buy and don't qualify for Section 8 - to be able to rent at all unless they're living with 6 other people in a 2 bedroom apartment who all chip in to pay an unjustly inflated rent that exploits the working poor who pay their own way.
This is really biased and nonsense. First off, I did not come out of the womb some privileged *kitten* that got handed all kinds of properties and real estate to rent out and screw the common man. I was poor as dirt and have worked my *kitten* off my whole life, to change my life. I grew up in rented projects, and rented for many years as an adult, so I know damn well both sides of the story. There are just as many scummy tenants as their are landlords, and some tenants actully have mire money than the landlord. The bottom line is I offer my house or building to be someone else's home. I expect them to take care of it and have pride in it. I expect nothing less. There also comes a certain responsibility in maintaining a dwelling you live in to a certain degree. I am not a hotel and I don't offer room service. I will not be there to change light bulbs or do nonsense things that the renter can and should do for themselves. It's about being accountable for yourself. I do not coddle people, I offer a nice place to live....that's it. And prices go up, just like everything in life, so as the cost of owning the property may increase so will the rent. That's just a fact of life and we all need to deal with it. I will make sure my rental properties are well maintained and in return I expect them to stay that way. If I rent to someone with a lower income I don't expect them to treat my place with any less respect than if I lived there. And if I rent to someone with a higher income I don't expect to be on call at their every whim. It's a misconception that landlords are rich fat cats trying to milk the lower class. That stereotype infuriates me. Every goddamn renter I have has is living in a FAR better place than I came from, and everyone of them have the responsibility of taking care of their own day to day maintenance. I think I allow them to be prideful of where they live. I know that's all I wanted when I was renting.
Nothing I said about current day renting is nonsense. Everything I sad about it is true. All landlords aren't the same and some are good people with a heart and I've known them. But I'd say the majority of them are exploitative to one degree or another YES. If you aren't exploitative, good, and I really mean that. But you're a landlord and I'm a working class tenant who's never been on government assistance one day in my life, including during my childhood. Our definition of what's exploitative might be subjective and differ wildly. I'd be happy to have you as a landlord if I can afford the rents you charge and can live in my own private unit without a roommate. The rent I can currently afford would be $800 a month with heat and hot water included and of course I would respect your property and my neighbors.
Most landlords are working class as well. And many have huge debt by just being a landlord. And it's easier to exploit the system as a tenant than a landlord. It's a nightmare to evict a problem tenant, but you mistreat a tenant as a landlord and it can mean anything from a civil suit to jail time. And let me tell you, it was pretty freaking hard not to mistreat a tenant that drove her car right into my house while she was drunk and on her cell phone. For every *kitten* landlord story I can match it with an equally shittyh tenant story. People are good and bad on both sides.0 -
What doesnutilities included mean ? So i pay them with my rent or are they included ? Is it better to have utilities included or not included ?
When I rented a house our rent also covered water/sewage, trash pick up. We paid electric, gas (propane) and internet/phone/cable/satelite if we wanted it on our own. The rent was the lowest for the area.
I would expect that if you are not paying utility companies directly that your rent will be higher to cover the included costs. You could look up average rent and utility costs for your area to see if the landlord is asking a fair amount.
The advantage to not having to pay utlities seperately is convenience (less things to remember, one place to deal with, not having to get services set up) and payments would be averaged instead of going up or down with your usage which could make budgeting easier. I suppose a disadvantage might be higher rent, not choosing which company to go with, paying more if you are not home a lot because other tenants use more than you might if you were paying utlities seperately.
http://realestate.syracuse.com/rentalliving/2017/06/pros_and_cons_of_utilities-inc.html
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Okay i have a question , i have two apartments for rent in my area near my budget and so many people are looking at them but i have no furniture and i don’t wanna pass up a good chance of a decent apartment but i also don’t want to rush. Should i wait until i have furniture or move in and buy a little as i go?0
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Okay i have a question , i have two apartments for rent in my area near my budget and so many people are looking at them but i have no furniture and i don’t wanna pass up a good chance of a decent apartment but i also don’t want to rush. Should i wait until i have furniture or move in and buy a little as i go?
Get the place first, add furniture slowly. It’s not a race it’s a marathon1 -
Lol okay what important things i should have before moving ?Okay i have a question , i have two apartments for rent in my area near my budget and so many people are looking at them but i have no furniture and i don’t wanna pass up a good chance of a decent apartment but i also don’t want to rush. Should i wait until i have furniture or move in and buy a little as i go?
Get the place first, add furniture slowly. It’s not a race it’s a marathon
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If there's a lot of competition for apartments then get the place first. You don't need anything at first. Bring your bed and your clothes. The rest you can buy later.1
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MeeseeksAndDestroy wrote: »Okay i have a question , i have two apartments for rent in my area near my budget and so many people are looking at them but i have no furniture and i don’t wanna pass up a good chance of a decent apartment but i also don’t want to rush. Should i wait until i have furniture or move in and buy a little as i go?
You don't have to wait to have furniture. I've spent years going from a sleeping bag, to an air mattress, and eventually to a futon I got for free.
It's a great feeling to just be on your own that you won't have to worry about "filling" the place right away
ETA: I first moved out at 17 and got my first real bed when I was 22. The first couch I got that I paid for new I was 27
Thanks0 -
DAMAGEDG00DS wrote: »Did you find a you fully furnished apartment, original poster?
Yes but I’m in a pickle i don’t have any furniture
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I still live with my parents. My mom and dad live here plus my siblings. Its 8 kids in all my oldest sister is 23 and the youngest is 2. and My grandmothers stays here shes 85. I have been debating about moving out for 2 months but, I think i really want to now. I live in a 3 bedroom house with 11 other people. Its small but its been like this since I was little. I sleep on a couch every night. I have a job making $16 an hour but, Im scared to move out because I might fail and I dont want to fail. As im getting older im noticing that I dont want to sleep on a couch any more I want my own room for once in my life. There are a few apartments in my area for rent for aorund $1000 with everything included ( rent,cable,internet,sewage,water) and I want to apply but something is holding me back. Ive talked to my parents about moving and they think I might not do so good because Im going too fast. Another thing about moving is I dont have any furniture..I never have had my own bed, I dont have a tv, If i move the only thing i will have is my clothes.I have been buying little things here and there to start me off for my apartment but I dont know ? I have a car that I pay which is only $118 a month, and my car insurance is $100 a month0
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I still live with my parents. My mom and dad live here plus my siblings. Its 8 kids in all my oldest sister is 23 and the youngest is 2. and My grandmothers stays here shes 85. I have been debating about moving out for 2 months but, I think i really want to now. I live in a 3 bedroom house with 11 other people. Its small but its been like this since I was little. I sleep on a couch every night. I have a job making $16 an hour but, Im scared to move out because I might fail and I dont want to fail. As im getting older im noticing that I dont want to sleep on a couch any more I want my own room for once in my life. There are a few apartments in my area for rent for aorund $1000 with everything included ( rent,cable,internet,sewage,water) and I want to apply but something is holding me back. Ive talked to my parents about moving and they think I might not do so good because Im going too fast. Another thing about moving is I dont have any furniture..I never have had my own bed, I dont have a tv, If i move the only thing i will have is my clothes.I have been buying little things here and there to start me off for my apartment but I dont know ? I have a car that I pay which is only $118 a month, and my car insurance is $100 a month
It sounds like your work situation is pretty stable - forgive me if you have covered this in other posts, but have you been there for awhile and is it full-time, permanent work? I think it sounds like you could handle this and the all utilities paid thing seems pretty legit to me. I live in an area with unusually low cost of living and that would still be a pretty good price even here where rent is generally quite low.
I think if you have confidence in your job being a sure thing, and you've been there at least a few months, it sounds like you should go for it. You can't fail if you don't try but you also can't succeed if you don't try, right?!
Maybe you could check on Craigslist or other give-and-take sites, FreeCycle, or something like that to get either a bed, futon, or sofa that you could sleep on as you're starting out. I don't know what stores you have available to you but I know in my area, Big Lots discount store is a pretty cheap place to get new mattresses & other furniture. A lot of college students I know who are just starting out like to get stuff there because it's as cheap as used, sometimes. I wish you the best!1 -
Okay i have a question , i have two apartments for rent in my area near my budget and so many people are looking at them but i have no furniture and i don’t wanna pass up a good chance of a decent apartment but i also don’t want to rush. Should i wait until i have furniture or move in and buy a little as i go?
Get the place first, add furniture slowly. It’s not a race it’s a marathon
well, technically, a marathon is a race.
just sayin'
But yeah, furniture? That's easy...
what do you really need to start off... a mattress, maybe a chair and a dresser.
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When I lived at the beach in Los Angeles, I didn't even own a bed. I borrowed a mattress from some guy that always stayed at his girlfriends house.
No dresser, no sofa or chairs.
... but I owned three bicycles, two killer stereos and an electric guitar (priorities)1 -
I still live with my parents. My mom and dad live here plus my siblings. Its 8 kids in all my oldest sister is 23 and the youngest is 2. and My grandmothers stays here shes 85. I have been debating about moving out for 2 months but, I think i really want to now. I live in a 3 bedroom house with 11 other people. Its small but its been like this since I was little. I sleep on a couch every night. I have a job making $16 an hour but, Im scared to move out because I might fail and I dont want to fail. As im getting older im noticing that I dont want to sleep on a couch any more I want my own room for once in my life. There are a few apartments in my area for rent for aorund $1000 with everything included ( rent,cable,internet,sewage,water) and I want to apply but something is holding me back. Ive talked to my parents about moving and they think I might not do so good because Im going too fast. Another thing about moving is I dont have any furniture..I never have had my own bed, I dont have a tv, If i move the only thing i will have is my clothes.I have been buying little things here and there to start me off for my apartment but I dont know ? I have a car that I pay which is only $118 a month, and my car insurance is $100 a month
$1000/month with all utilities covered isn't bad at all for most areas, unless you're either in a very poor part of the city. Or, in rural. Then, might be high.
There's two ways you could approach moving out:
1) Get a single bedroom apartment, or studio (no bedroom), such as you're looking at now. You don't need furniture. But, I would make sure you have some necessities such as a some basic cookware, and at a minimum a sleeping bag or blankets to pad yourself from the floor. Take your time, and slowly add some necessities such as a sleeping cot or couch. This keeps your expenses down, and your debt low/non-existent.
2) Look at renting a room from a homeowner. This is usually cheaper than your own place, and you generally have use of the kitchen, etc. And, might be furnished in terms of a bed and a dresser. You're still living with someone else. But, might be a good mid-point start compared to what you have now.
One item I would highly recommend: Renter's insurance. Many places do require it, some don't. Depending on where you live, the rates will be different. But, I think on average, renter's insurance is about $125-150/year. Higher priced cities will most likely be more.
As to the discussion on responsibilities of a tenant, it all varies on region, type of place you're renting, and contract with landlord. In all the rentals I've been in, I'm responsible for little things such as light bulbs, very small holes in walls from things such as nail holes, etc. But, if it's anything such as a bad switch, outlet, furnace, etc., it's on the landlord. I just make a call, explain to them what happened and they repair it. Now, these have been apartments and the townhouse I'm currently renting. These have on-call maintenance for the complex/buildings with a management company, and not an individual I'm renting from.
If I'm renting a house, condo, or townhome from an individual, then typically the expenses are I'd pay for all utilities, and minor repairs. Major things such as appliances, roof, or structural stuff, landlord would be liable. At which point, if I'm paying utilities, and paying a higher rent than I could buy, I'd just as soon own than rent.
I've always taken pride in where I live, whether I've owned it or renting as I currently do. I've seen some pretty trashed rental units, and not just lower income either. Some of it is a mixed bag of responsibilites. Tenants not caring for things because they're "just renting", and landlords who try to keep it well maintained. But because of high traffic/use things get worn out and looks "heavily lived in" on older buildings.1
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