Hindsight is 20/20. Live and Learn. With age comes wisdom. We’re familiar with all those expressions, and all of them apply to lessons first-time renters learn. Whether your first apartment was decades ago or you signed your first lease last month, invariably renters who become tenants discover things they wish they’d known prior to renting their first apartment.
I wish I knew what it would mean to share walls with complete strangers. Strangers can and sometimes do become neighbors and even friends, but initially, they are strangers.
Sharing walls with people you don’t know means you must be mindful of schedules other than your own. For example, I never thought much of doing my laundry in the evening. I was running the washer then the dryer in the 11:00 p.m. hour.
The next morning, I woke up to a nastygram from the adjacent neighbor. I don’t recall if they were downstairs or beside us, but suffice it to say, we shared walls. They made clear that they could hear the noise from those appliances. It was disturbing them, even keeping them from sleeping—yikes!
I learned that my timetable might not mesh with the schedules of neighbors around me. Courtesy and compromise are part of being a good neighbor when you live in an apartment. I adjusted laundry time. Learning whether your complex or the greater surrounding community has “quiet hours” or noise ordinances will also go a long way toward shared peace and quiet. It could even be spelled out in your lease.
Know Your Rights — and Your Responsibilities — as a Tenant
Real estate, leased or owned, includes the right to “quiet enjoyment” of the property. Apartments.com explains, “It’s ideal for the covenant of quiet enjoyment to be included in your lease. Your right to quiet enjoyment may not be written out in a lease agreement. Some states require specific language be included in a lease, others do not, so check your state laws.”
More than just noise concerns, quiet enjoyment also speaks to landlord access to your apartment, the amount of notice given prior to a landlord visit, etc. When it comes to legitimate noise complaints, Apartments.com says, “To qualify as excessive noise, the disturbance must be ongoing.”
“As a renter, you should also be conscious as to what noises you create and how it affects your fellow tenants. If you live on the second story of an apartment building and above, you’re probably conscious of the unit below you, but noise travels in all directions.”
Lesson learned! There are also things one can do to help soundproof or simply reduce noise emanating from the apartment. Carpets, keeping pets happy and occupied, and even the right window treatments can help muffle the din.
Seven Things First-Time Renters Should Know Before Signing a Lease
Over 10 years ago, Adam Dachis compiled “Seven Things I Wish I Knew Before Getting My First Apartment” for LifeHacker.com. His list has withstood the test of time.
- You Can't Pick Your Landlord. (But you can chat with current tenants.)
- You Can't Pick Your Neighbors Either. (Try talking through any issues or concerns before escalating to the Landlord.)
- You Should Pretend That You're Buying a Home. (Consider asking questions about your top concerns such as age/function of appliances or the roof, for example.)
- Bring a Checklist with You Next Time You're Apartment Hunting. (Easily Googled. National Public Radio (NPR) has a comprehensive one here: https://www.npr.org/2021/08/24/1030659258/looking-for-a-new-apartment-heres-a-checklist-to-help-with-the-housing-hunt)
- You Need to Know Your Neighborhood. (Due diligence here can go a long way. Whether it’s traffic, wildlife, or even crime, the more community information you have, the better.)
- Circumstances Change With the Seasons. (Some issues won’t present themselves until the seasons and the weather change. Examples: the rainy season reveals a leaky roof or the heat doesn’t work properly in the winter.)
- Read the (redacted expletive) Lease! (This speaks for itself. According to Dachis, the lesson here is that if you read it, you can request changes that better suit your needs.)
Renters themselves say it best, sharing myriad nuggets of apartment living tips they’ve gleaned as first-time tenants.
Real Renters, Real Regrets: Lessons Learned the Hard Way
Bernice Coleman signed a lease on her first apartment after graduating from college. No more dorms and no more roommates! She intentionally chose an older complex because “Cost drove my choice. It surprises people when I say amenities were not that important to me.”
Good thing because she found a small apartment complex, just four buildings. Built in the late 1960s, the community had some picnic tables in a green space courtyard and nothing more in the way of neighborhood extras.
When Coleman made her choice, “Rent matched amenities,” she recalls. Five years later, rent has increased. While no community amenities have been added, new owners have made improvements, and Coleman is pleased with the upkeep.
Looking back, there’s one thing she’d do differently. She wished she’d taken a closer look at kitchen appliances. The basics were there but they were dated. The thing she misses is having a refrigerator with an icemaker, a small detail and a near certainty in newer apartments, but it wasn’t part of the old appliance.
“A washer and dryer in my apartment would’ve been nice,” she adds. The extra expense of purchasing both in addition to move-in costs really added up. At least the older apartment had an in-unit hookup.
Warren Randall has rented in the metro Atlanta area for decades. He says he should’ve taken more time to explore amenities offered at various apartments. As a first-time renter, he was more focused on the size and space of the unit.
“The floor plan was not enough,” the renter recalls. “As I rented other places, I realized the benefits of amenities, like a fitness center. Not only did it mean I didn’t have to join a gym, it also meant I didn’t have to have room for that stuff in my apartment.”
Randall often rented with roommates. There was a lesson there, too.
“If you have a roommate, make sure they’re a good one,” he cautions. “Choose someone you know well, or find a good way to vet them.”
There’s another very important concern that would seem obvious but bears mentioning.
“Make sure they have a decent job so they can pay their share of the rent,” says Randall. “The worst thing is a roommate you end up not being able to live with.”
Sometimes, lessons first-time renters learn have nothing to do with the apartment itself or even the apartment complex. Laura Cooper has been a lifelong renter. She remembers her first place and offers this advice: “Don’t get a brand-new puppy in your first apartment.”
It’s not because she didn’t love her dog, rather it was “too many learning curves at once. You’re learning how to take care of an apartment for the first time.”
First-time puppy ownership plus first-time apartment renting added up to a lot! Cooper was already in a pet-friendly building but adding the furry family member so fast wasn’t planned.
“I got the place, and then I came upon the puppy,” she recalls. Turns out “it wasn’t a good idea,” laughs Cooper.
Watch Out for Hidden Fees and Move-Out Surprises
Chal Whitfield says first-time renters should be “very fee aware, right up until you move out.” He discovered this the hard way. Most renters focus on getting their deposit back, but few expect extra fees tacked on as you make your exit.
“We moved out on a Sunday. I thought we’d handled all the details in advance because the leasing office was closed on Sundays,” Whitfield remembers. “I left our apartment key in the key drop at the office. On Monday, I got a call that we’re being charged a fee for ‘turning the key in late,’ which was absurd.”
Ultimately, the fee wasn’t charged because Whitfield pushed back on it. In an era where landlords have access to bank accounts and can easily debit fees and charges, it pays renters to be mindful and vigilant in this area.
Always Do the Walk-Through — No Exceptions
Isabella Rodriguez of Jacksonville, Florida, encourages first-timers not to skip the walk-through before signing the lease. It’s an opportunity to document any problems or needed maintenance in the apartment, a step that safeguards your deposit.
“I didn’t do that with my current place,” Rodriguez explains. “But I wish I had. What I did instead was take photos on my move-in day. At least I have the time stamp on those if ever there is an issue.”
She says the walk-through inspection is also a good way to ensure any necessary work is completed prior to moving into the apartment. Maintenance can “make or break an apartment complex,” according to Rodriguez.
“Look at the reviews of the maintenance people,” says the Florida renter. She has high praise for the team at her current apartment, calling them “some of the best. They respond right away, within an hour, tops. They’re fixing things same day unless they need to order a part or something like that. That matters a lot.”
Lease budget, utilities, parking, renter’s insurance, and more—the list of concerns for first-time renters is extensive.
You don’t have to look long or hard online to find many renters bemoaning all they wish they’d known before renting their first place. Every renter’s experience is unique, each learning something different. Future renters can benefit from the shared experiences of renters that preceded them, but new renters will learn their lessons, too, as they seek their home, sweet home.
