Questions to Ask Before You Sign Your Lease
Leasing season at the University of Kentucky is right around the corner and there are a few questions that you might want to ask yourself and a leasing agent before you sign your name on the dotted line.
Let’s start with some personal questions that you might have before you decide where you want to live or whom you want to live with.
Is this house/apartment a convenient location to campus?
Is this house/apartment a convenient location for my other activities that I participate in?
Do I want to live with roommates or by myself?
How many roommates to I want to live with?
How much am I willing to pay for rent per month?
Am I going to be able to focus at an off-campus house/apartment or should I live on campus?
After you answer these questions you should be ready to start house or apartment hunting. Then, being able to ask a leasing agent some very important questions as well.
Is this a reliable landlord?
Have I read good/positive reviews about them on Facebook or elsewhere?
How much is the rent?
How long is the lease?
When does the lease begin? And when does it end?
Are utilities included in the rent?
If I am living with roommates, is the rent one lump sum that we split or do we each pay separately?
Is parking included? Or it there easily accessible public parking nearby?
Are pets allowed?
Under what circumstances is my landlord able to enter my house/apartment?
How do I report a problem in my house/apartment?
Do you require renters insurance?
How secure is the property?
When is rent due?
Since the beginning of college, I have asked myself these questions each year. Thankfully, I have lucked out with great roommates, a great landlord and a great location close to campus. I would say the most important takeaway from this list is to decide if you want to live with roommates or by yourself. When I decided to live with roommates, I found my lifelong best friends.
