I have to admit, I stole this idea from nev_payne’s thread asking for advice on entering the real world (http://forums.pcapex.com/showthread.php?t=30299) … waste not, want not … as grandmothers tend to say


1 - Get your own place if you possibly can - people are scum, house sharing sucks. If you have to share, get your own fridge, get your own kitchen stuff & lock it all in your room with your food & toiletries.

2 - Most rented places are absolute toilets, so hold out for somewhere that is at least clean, even if the decor sucks. You can always paint the walls magnolia & buy some rugs.

3 - Change the locks.

4 - And the phone number too. I remember one place were I couldn't change the number, I got some doofus calling for about 3 months wanting a "Richard Head" (seriously) - it only stopped when I yelled a torrent of abuse that would have made a sailor blush when they woke me up too early one Sunday morning.

5 - Don't turn down any free stuff - let everyone you know you want to see any furniture or kitchen equipment before they chuck it out. You can score some quite good stuff that way - a lot of the time people are just getting rid of it because it doesn't match their new paint or something. I got a sofa, armchair, table, chairs, kettle, toaster, crockery, VCR, pots & pans, etc etc that way.

6 - Experiment to find the minimum heating/hot water heating you can get away with - setting the thermostat to 21c & wearing a jumper really cuts down those bills.

7 - Don't have a housewarming party, but invite everyone you know round separately or a few at a time – you’re much more likely to score some good gifts that way.

8 – introduce yourself to your new neighbours the day you move in. This will also tell you if there are any psychos that need avoiding.

9 – Get used to buying the “value” range of food from wherever you shop – in most cases it’s as good as the posh branded stuff … apart from baked beans. Don’t skimp on them.

10 – If money gets really tight, it’s possible to live on beans on toast & tap water.

11 – If you’re not allowed to smoke in the house, try rollups instead – the smell doesn’t linger half as badly, so unless your landlord is in the habit of making snap inspections (also see # 3), or you accidently burn the place down, they’ll never know.

12 – ditto for sub-letting an extra room to one of your friends.


Not that I’d do # 11 & 12, of course.

You forgot #13......(true story, I kid you not)

13. If you're renting in a bad neighborhood, or even a good neighborhood for that matter, ask the local police department to run a narcotics K-9 through the apartment before you move in. Many years ago when I was in Florida Keys, a buddy of mine moved into an apartment on a Tuesday. That Friday night, it was raided and a stash of drugs were found hidden in one of the floor vents (thanks to a snitch). My friend did some pretty fast talking and after verifying his identity, they kindly helped remove his face from the floorboards and took the handcuffs off.

When I got out of the Navy and went back to school, I did precisely that. I was moving into an apartment typically rented to college students. As soon as we got into the doorway, the narc K-9 went nuts and bolted for the bedroom. In one of the dresser drawers was 1/4 lb bag of weed.

Yeah.

Rob

P.S.
Great post, Jonny!

Edit: Just to expand a little on #5, going "dumster diving" around the middle of May in a college town is great because you wouldn't believe the stuff that the kids throw out! You could get furniture for you entire house that way....uh, I'd buy a new mattress, though.

#3 is kinda iffy. If you change locks, generally you must give a copy to the landlord/ manager/ whatever.

But most landlords change locks when you move out. At least I do. Its a huge liability if you don't.

#2 is somewhat true, but it usualy is only a problem when you are getting the cheapest deal in town. I do my best to keep my rentals in tip top shape.

And to add some of my own:

#14 Do NOT put a hole int he wall or paint anything for any reason, you will be charged for it when you goto leave, unless you own your place than it doesnt matter.

#15 When you move into a rental, take pictures of every square inch of the place, immediatly after you get the keys and before you even move anything in. This is so valuable when you got leave and there are surprize deductions from your deposit.

#16 Never ever under any circumstances be late for a rent/ morgage payment. There is no point in paying the water bill if you lose youre house becasue of late payments. (this happens a lot more often that you think)

#17 if YOU broke it do NOT call your landlord/manager at 2am wanting him to fix it. And unless it is an emergency, never call your landlord/manager at 2am. (this happens a lot more often than you think)

Don't rent if you can help it. Especially in FL. Only rent if you are gonna be there for like a little while, nothing permanent.