Moving Into A New Apartment?

I have seen plenty of people fall victim to the schemes of cheap landlords. And the way the rents are here in Boston, NYC, and DC I know for sure that all of you renters out there should at least be getting your money's worth and most of you aren't. So here are some tips, do's and don'ts to moving into a "new" apartment and what you should expect and/or demand from your new landlord.

1. Never, ever move into a dirty apartment, it should be spotless when you move in.
2. The apartment should be free of any maintenance issues (you do not want to be held responsible for things that were broken upon move-in when you move-out).
3. There is no such thing as a key deposit or pet deposit in MA. It is illegal, period.
4. Ask your landlord if he/she changed the locks (they are supposed to, but the sneaky ones never do), you do not want anyone walking into your apartment at 3am, uninvited, or come home to find you've been cleaned out!
5. The apartment should be in what the industry considers "move-in condition", click on this link  and go through this checklist when you move in to make sure everything is in order and that you don't forget anything. 
6. Check the cabinets, if there are someone else's belongings in them ask your landlord to throw them away before moving in: you don't want any recourse from the previous tenant about something they "forgot".
7. All rent increases must be in writing and you must be given a 30 day advance notice before implementation. 
8. If something breaks and it wasn't your fault don't take it upon yourself to fix it, call your landlord. 
9. Massachusetts law prohibits landlords from collecting any money in advance of a new tenancy other than the first and last month's rent, a security deposit in an amount equal to or less than one month's rent, and the cost of installing a new lock. (Massachusetts General Laws, c. 186, s. 15B).
10. Your security deposit should be held in an interest bearing account, therefore, you should receive an interest check annually, albeit a small one. 
11. Heat should be available to all renters on September 15th of each calendar year, it's Massachusetts law. 

How do I know all this you ask? Well, I'm the landlord of 300 apartments for a living. The landlords who usually break these rules are the ones who are renting out their condo or single family home. The majority of apartment buildings , local housing authorities obey rules and regulations. It's the small timers, the people who aren't heavily regulated that you have to watch out for. Hopefully this post will save you some heartache. 

Peace & Progress


 This post is purely for informational purposes only.