In many ways, the idea of renting an apartment may seem like it has many advantages over making a purchase. You won’t have to pay as much money up front, plus the agreements you sign are much more flexible. This means that it is much easier for you to move on if you feel the need to.
However, renting also comes with a number of headaches that you will need to consider before making a decision one way or the other. What may seem like a good idea can turn into a nightmare once you finally get the keys to your new place.
bad owners
In an ideal world, anyone who acts as a building owner will be vigilant when it comes to handling tenant concerns and issues. Unfortunately, there are many cases where a landlord simply doesn’t want to express the concern he needs to make sure his tenants are comfortable.
Try to do some research on other properties owned by the landlord before you sign an agreement. If possible, it’s also a good idea to talk to other tenants, especially if the landlord owns the entire block of flats. Find out how easy they are to communicate with and how they react when news of a problem is sent to them.
Privacy
Apartments, by their very nature, do not offer the same levels of privacy that you might experience if you buy or rent a single family home. You will often find people in the hallways, which is not a problem in most cases, but can become a problem if you don’t get along with a fellow tenant for whatever reason.
Also, you will find that you can often hear noises from your neighbors, regardless of whether they live next door or on a different floor. While this can be distracting, it also means that they can hear you too. This only serves to further lower your privacy levels, which can be a problem for many people. It also means that you may run into trouble if you try to throw a party or participate in noisy activities.
The neighbors
As with landlords, you can never guarantee that your fellow tenants are the kind of people you want as neighbors. As much as you research a building, it’s often difficult to determine what your long-term neighbors will be like until you’ve actually taken the plunge and moved in.
In addition, you will often find that landlords are unwilling to release information about problem tenants. After all, they want to get a paying tenant in any vacant apartment they have, so while they may not lie to you, they may hide the truth in some cases. Bad neighbors can exist in any area of life, but in an apartment you are so close that it can become a big headache.