INGO, I turn to you again...

[Colinb913]

Due to quite a dew recent happenings, me and my girlfriend decided to get a apartment together...

INGO, I have never shopped for a apartment before, and frankly could use whatever advice you can give me..

Lay it on me.

 

[SSGSAD]

Start lookin'..... You can check with a local Realtor, and check the papers...

 

[Mackey]

-Do not get an apartment with people above you. It sucks.
-When checking out apartments, come back Friday or Saturday night and check out what's going down. Might not be so cool.
- Actually read the lease (especially the parts about getting out of the lease).
- If you're not a smoker, and you hate that smell, try to figure out if anyone in the apartments around the one you're considering smoke.
- Before signing the lease, check out the whole place - thoroughly! Do the toilets work right, is there any leaking anywhere? Look at the ceiling. Any evidence of leaking. Is the carpet really clean. Check in the corners, were there pets from the previous tenants?
Oh.... read the lease!!

 

[SaintsNSinners]

Dont get an apartment.... Plenty of houses for rent for apartment prices..

 

[Colinb913]

I'd be better off renting a older, run down house, than a newer nicer apartment?

 

[sepe]

I'd be better off renting a older, run down house, than a newer nicer apartment?

I no nothing about your area but up in this part of the state you can rent a decent house for about the same as an apartment.

 

[ditto]

I'd go a step further and say try to avoid living with people above OR below you, period. I speak from personal experience, BOTH are pretty bad.

Make a list of things you simply can't compromise on, then do a lot of online searching. For me the list included things like W/D hookups, pet friendly, ground floor, dishwasher...etc...stuff like that. Craigslist is a really good resource. There are a lot of online resources if you just google "newburgh for rent" etc. or whatever area it is you're looking at. Compose a list of "possibles" and spend a morning or two calling each one with your questions ready.

Renting a house VS apartment just depends on what you are looking for. I couldn't find a decent house to rent in my price range that wasn't in a questionable neighborhood, but I also didn't have a lot of time, either. Everyone is different.

Keep in mind that most places charge you a fee to fill out an application for the apartment, which is usually like $40, so unless you have money to throw around you want to be sure before you start filling out forms.

Like anything else, it's a learning experience.

Good luck to you and your girlfriend. This is a very big step - make sure you both are ready, and signed on for the same agenda. But that's a whole other thread worth of advice.

 

[SaintsNSinners]

I got a 3 bedroom house on the southside just inside the belt for less than my old 2 bedroom townhouse cost me. My neighborhood is safe quiet.

 

[RedneckReject]

I'm with SnS on this one. I've lived in many apartments and and now am renting a house for the same amount or maybe even a little less as an apartment would cost me. It's not old, run down or small, my neighborhood is safe, it's convenient to everything, and I have a wonderful landlord. In the year that I've lived here I've only had one problem with the house and he was here to fix it within hours of me calling him. If I can help it I will never go into an apartment again. I hate hearing other people thumping around all the time when I'm trying to sleep and am worried that, since I work odd hours, I will disturb someone else in the middle of the night. Give it a shot. Look around. You might find a great home.

 

[daedrian]

Apartments suck. Find a house to rent. Use Zillow.com and search for rentals in your area. It's not going to have every single rental in your area, but it will have a lot of them.

 

[Never A Victim]

Top floor apartment. Less noise, less chance of a break in, and its good exersize.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

What's your budget, OP?

Are you going to be seeking out an efficiency or a 3 BR / 2 BA apartment?

-J-

 

[88GT]

I'd be better off renting a older, run down house, than a newer nicer apartment?

No. An house that isn't kept up is a sign of a bad landlord. Trust me on this. A house also comes with the risk that the landlord doesn't respond to repair requests. Or worse, is completely ignorant of the law. (Though that's not to say that apartment complexes don't violate it--one of mine in college did, though I didn't know this until later when I became a landlord--just that they are less likely to do so since they are easier targets due to their bigger pockets.) Apartment complexes tend not to be slumlords.

FWIW, none of my houses are comparable with the going rates for a comparable-sized apartment unless you're looking at the "luxury" apartments.

 

[mcolford]

I got 2 different family members that deal in rentals in my area (not yours unfortunately). I will advise like everyone else. Go with a house.

In my opinion a house may be a bit more, as with an apartment, they will typically pay water (or landlords do here)....

A house also gives you yard, possibly garage, and noone on the other side of the drywall.

At the end of the day though, it boils down to your budget.

 

[eldirector]

In my area, you can get a small house for the same (or cheaper) than the same sized apartment. You can also pay a bunch more for more house. All depends on what you want, and what you can spend.

For apartment living: top floor, on the end (fewest neighbors to hear). If you can, get some police report history of the area, so you can see how secure it is (or isn't). Visit the places you like on weekend evenings. Read and understand every single word in the lease.

Sometimes you can pay ahead for discounts. Works well if you know you are staying for a while.

My wife and I actually had a decent little apartment for a few years. Sure, it had its issues, but it was fine. We eventually rented a house for LESS than what the apartment rent had risen to.

Oh, and don't break up with the GF while you are renting. Landlords don't care about your personal issues. They just want their rent.

 

[Bunnykid68]

I would go the house route if at all possible. Something else to consider, if you can afford that much rent you might be able to get a mortgage at the same rate or lower if you have the credit or someone willing to help you out.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Also some advice:

Either get BOTH names on the lease agreement as both paying half - or be sure that one party can swing the rent by themselves.

-J-

 

[snorko]

Due to quite a dew recent happenings, me and my girlfriend decided to get a apartment together...

INGO, I have never shopped for a apartment before, and frankly could use whatever advice you can give me..

Lay it on me.

What is your price range? Are you wanting to stay in Newburgh or are you considering other areas?

 

[fordmanchris]

Don't move into an apartment that is a 55 and up that rents a small percentage to younger people no matter how good of a deal they give you to help fill up the building!

 

[88GT]

Also some advice:

Either get BOTH names on the lease agreement as both paying half - or be sure that one party can swing the rent by themselves.

-J-

Good point. From the landlord's perspective it won't matter. And they won't delineate who is responsible for how much. That will be an agreement between the two lessees. However, if you default because the other party reneged on his/her obligation, he/she has committed a breach of contract and can be sued for the damages (imposed by the apartment for your breach of that contract) you incurred.

The flip side is if you alone are responsible for paying the rent, you have the option of "evicting" your roommates. So if things go south with the roommate(s), you aren't stuck in the lease until the termination date living with someone to whom you want to cause bodily harm.

As a landlord, I prefer single party tenants. Only one jackass to deal with.