What condition should I expect a rental apartment to be in when I move in?
The condition of an apartment upon move-in can vary depending on a number of factors, including the quality of the management company / landlord for rentals. Regardless, you can usually contact a super or property manager to help address certain issues when moving into a new home.
Certain mgmt cos / landlords strive to provide new tenants with a pristine apartment upon move-in, while it can be somewhat hit-or-miss in other situations and especially with independent landlords. Here are a number of minimum aspects to expect when moving into a new rental apartment:
- Cleanliness
- The apartment should be swept (and mopped), all interior / exterior aspects of cabinetry, windows and appliances should be wiped down and bathroom fixtures should look visibly clean.
- Painting
- Walls / ceilings are typically spackled and repainted during the time between move-out of a prior tenant and move-in of a new tenant (repainting of walls is relatively standard, so make sure this will be completed prior to move-in).
- Repairs
- All fixtures, lights, appliances, cabinets and other items that are part of the apartment should be in working order.
- Furniture
- All furniture and belongings of prior tenants should be removed from the unit prior to move in.
- Window Treatments
- Generally, blinds or other types of window treatments are not included with an apartment rental, but can sometimes be left behind by prior tenants.
If one or several of the above items are not up to your standards, contact the super, property manager or mgmt co / landlord directly and discuss the various issues that you would like addressed.
