Tips for Renting Your First Apartment! (Budget, Tours, Moving In)

Learn how to search, apply and rent your first apartment! I'll be sharing the tips I followed to budget, prepare my credit score, search for apartments, complete apartment tours, fill out an apartment application, and get approved for my first apartment lease.

Hey guys, it's Joi here. Today's video is all about finding your first apartment. As you guys know, I recently moved into my first apartment in September of 2020 so, this is my first apartment post-college. I wanted to make sure I gave you a guide on all things first apartment. So today, we're going to cover budgeting, your credit score, searching for your apartment, applying, getting approved, making deposits, and finally moving in. We will cover the aspects and tips that I learned when going through this process as a new college grad navigating adulting. I hope these tips help you. If you're excited about this video, comment down below on what your dream city to live in is and if you plan on moving into an apartment anytime soon. I'm super excited to see what cities you guys want to live in. After you leave your comment, make sure you check out all the other apartment videos on my channel. They're so fun! I have hauls, decorating, and more. Go check those out, and I will link my apartment playlist up here and down below.

The first part of your apartment search is really about figuring out what your budget is and if you're even eligible to get your apartment because of your credit score. When you think about budget, one rule that I like to follow is the 50-30-20 rule. I talked about this rule in my money habits video. But, if you didn't see that video, the rule includes allocating 50% of your budget for needs, 30% of your budget for wants, and 20% of your budget for saving and investing. If you're going to use the 50-30-20 rule, let's say you make $2,000 a month, which means only 50% of that, aka $1,000, should be allocated towards your needs. Needs include things like your housing, car, and any types of other bills that you have to pay off. Once you figure out what your 50% portion is, you will know if you can afford to get an apartment on your own or if you're going to need a roommate. The higher the rent is, the higher your income has to be.

Another thing to know about getting an apartment (at least in the U.S.) is that having enough money isn't enough. You have to present documents that indicate that you can afford the apartment, i.e., proof of income. You also need a good credit score to get approved for an apartment.

One thing that people do if they don't have a strong credit score is they use something called a guarantor. And this could be a parent or guardian who has a stronger credit score than who guarantees the rent on your apartment in case you can't pay it. Make sure you talk to someone who is qualified. If you have any more questions about the budget or your credit, I would go to Google and type in: what credit score do I need for this apartment? or what is the average rent price in my city? to get a ballpark of how much you need to spend. You can also ask any friends or family who live in apartments how much they pay. Hopefully, they're willing to disclose that information and give you some tips on finding an apartment.

Now, let's get into how you can search and find the perfect apartment for you. If you live in the city that you're searching for apartments in, I would go to an area that you think you want to live in, walk around, drive around and see if any buildings stand out to you. That's a great starting point for curating your list. If you have friends who live in the same city, ask them if they like their building and recommend living there. Another option for those who don't live in the city they're moving to is using some online apartment search websites. There are so many different apartment search websites like apartments.com, StreetEasy for people searching in New York City, and Nooklyn for people searching in Brooklyn. I know many of the New York ones because I was originally going to move to New York until I had to re-route. I'm living in Philadelphia right now. Use all the apartment search websites that you can.

If you are a college student, try to find any Facebook groups that your university might have where people are subleasing or trying to find roommates, so you can at least be affiliated and live with someone from your university. When you're doing your apartment search, here are a few things to look for when you're looking at the online listing.

The first thing is the location. You want to look at the maps view and see if it's close to anything you want. One hack is to look up your favorite grocery store and see what apartment buildings are near that. It's a well-known fact that Whole Foods are in nicer neighborhoods, so you can start by looking at Whole Foods and seeing what apartments are near that. Or you can start by looking up, you know, something that you want to be in walking distance from, and see what buildings are near that. If you want to be near a mall or something, you can see what apartment buildings are near that. And it doesn't have to be something super extravagant, and you might want to live near a park, or some pathways or something that interests you.

Other than location, you want to look at the price to make sure that it's in your budget. Many listings will have a lower price to get you to click on it, but then you find out it's for a studio apartment or something very small and possibly not something that's fitting your needs. Next, you want to look at all the photos, 3D views, or videos where you can walk through the apartment building and some of the units to get a feel for what it's like there.

And the last thing I like to look at is the reviews. I'll look at reviews on a couple of different sites. First, I'll do a Google search of that building and read some of the reviews. I'll also look at the reviews on a website, like apartments.com. With reviews, you want to take things as a grain of salt, and I think that anything with lower than three stars is something to concern yourself with. But I think four or five stars are always good. When you think about it, many people who leave reviews for apartment buildings are people who had a bad experience. Not everyone who had a good experience is leaving a review to kind of balance things out. So when you look at the reviews, maybe take a notebook and write down some of the things that concern you. And you can ask the leasing agent or residents when you go visit about those issues. If I see any reviews about pest issues or break-ins, I remove those places from my list because I felt like those were big red flags. Once you've been scouring the internet, I would narrow down the list to your top five and then split those tours between two days. And that takes me to the next step of the apartment journey, which is scheduling your visit.

Once you have your top five list of apartments, think about when you're going to be able to visit. If you live in the city, it should be fairly easy but, if you're commuting, visiting five apartments in one day probably isn't feasible. Schedule your apartment tours out equally, and make sure that you know the directions to get there.

Make a list of questions that you have that you want to ask about each building, and have a list of your non-negotiables. Sometimes when you do your visit, you get super excited, and then you forget that you said you had to have a washer and dryer, and then the next thing you know, you're trying to convince yourself that not having one is okay. Make those lists beforehand, and when you get there, you should be set to get all your questions answered.

My next piece of advice is to record your tours on video. It might seem awkward to do, but it's not. You need to be able to remember which units are which. Record what the leasing agent is saying (they don't have to be on camera). But make sure you can hear what they're saying, how they're describing the units, and the answered questions. That was so helpful for me when I decided which apartment I wanted because it refreshed my memory. After all the tours, it just got confusing trying to remember which apartment was which or which building had which deals, etc.

After you've finished all of your visits, it's time to decide on the apartment that you're going to apply for. Hopefully, the places you visit have available units for the moving day that you want. Once you know which unit and building you want to apply to, it's time to fill out the application they've given you. Make sure that any deals like "one-month free rent" are included, written out, and guaranteed in your contract. Sometimes the applications are online, and you'll get approved quickly, and sometimes, you have to send it to the leasing office. Whatever format the application is in, make sure you fill that out fast, especially if you're in a place with a competitive market. Make sure that you are ready to pay an application fee and be ready to lock in your apartment because as soon as you're approved, they're going to send a lease over.

Another tip is to make sure you walk through your unit before you sign the lease. Sometimes, you tour a unit that might be a little bit newer or just not your unit, so you want to make sure you view your exact unit before signing the lease. Once you get your lease, make sure you review it and maybe get a second set of eyes on it because it is a contract. Usually, after you sign your lease, your security deposit is due, and that's a lump of money that you give to the building to cover damage to the property. If there are no damages to your unit, you get that money back, and if there are damages when you move out, they subtract that money. Also, your first month's rent will be due. I've heard of situations where people with lower credit had to pay more month's rent upfront if they wanted the unit. So if that applies to you, learn more about that with your leasing agent.

When you know you're moving day, think about all the things you have to do, i.e., shopping. If you're moving into your first apartment, there's probably going to be a lot more shopping than someone who's moving in between apartments for their second or third time. Side Note: I have a big apartment haul that you can watch to get inspiration on things you'll need for your apartment. So you can watch that if you need help figuring out what exact things you need for your apartment. Think about all the things you want to have the first couple of days you're in your apartment. Do you want to have food there? Do you want to have a bed there? What are must-haves for your move-in day? Then, prioritize what things you can get a few days or months after you move in if you have to spread your budgeting along the way.

Also, for moving day, you need to ask yourself a couple of questions about the logistics. Are you going to need a moving truck? Are you going to be able to put everything in your car? Especially if you're moving to a different state, you might have to fly in or rent a car. Try to plan those things that are advanced to make your moving date as stress-free as possible.

And the last and final step is to get your keys and enjoy your apartment. After you have your keys, you'll go to your unit and move in. Sometimes they'll have paperwork that you fill out. For example, an apartment damage checklist is a document where you'll mark any damages you see when you first move in so that you won't be charged for them down the road. And you'll receive your welcome packet, if you live in a building with amenities, you'll learn all about those inside there. Then it's time to enjoy your new apartment and begin paying rent every month, utilities, etc.

I hope this video helped outline the process of getting an apartment. This may or may not be all-encompassing because I'm just speaking from my apartment searching experience. Do your research, get as much help as possible. And hope this was a good starting point for all of you guys looking for your apartment. If you made it this far, I would appreciate it if you could subscribe to my channel and give this video a thumbs up. I continue to post vlogs and different videos about lifestyle, branding, and beauty. So make sure you join us along the way. And I'll talk to you next time. Bye.