Cape Fear Wedding: Choosing an apartment

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Choosing an apartment
Questions to consider when renting your new home

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Renting has financial advantages in some circumstances

   You have recently made one of the most important decisions of your lifetime: Getting married. Now you must decide what and where your first home together will be. The majority of newly married couples choose to make an apartment complex -- owners like to call them "communities" -- their first shared residence. Here are a few tips which should prove helpful in selecting an apartment.
   Location: In most cases you will want to find an apartment located conveniently to one or both of your jobs. It is important to weigh the benefits of cheaper rent against commuting time. One suggestion is to test drive a potential commute during the week rather than on a weekend to get a realistic idea of traffic.
   Community: There are benefits in both the large apartment development and the smaller one. A larger development will typically offer more amenities such as pools, spas, weight rooms, tennis courts, etc. A higher rental rate may need to be charged for the staff for leasing, maintenance, etc. The advantages to a smaller complex may include a homey environment, personal service by the resident manager and potentially lower rent.
   Service: Regardless of rental rates, service is extremely important. The least expensive apartment is no bagain if your needs are not met. Questions to ask an on-site manager include: What staff members live on-site? How fast are maintenance requests handled? How long have you been on the propery? Is there a professional management company involved? If any of the questions are not answered to your satisfaction, then this may not be the apartment for you.
   Rent: Most communities qualify their prospective residents initially through an income-to-rent ratio. The standard ratio used in most parts of the country is that rent should not exceed one-fourth to one-third of your combined income. In other words, if your combined income is $2,400 per month you could typically afford a $600 to $800 per month apartment. This, of course, is only a guideline and you need to take other fixed expenses into consideration when figuring your budget.
   Neighbors: Think about who will be living next door to you -- or upstairs. Frequently an apartment complex will cater to a particular demographic group. In Wilmington, for example, some apartment developments are dominated by university students; others by retirees. Look around a place you are considering to get a sense of whether you would be comfortable socializing with your neighbors, and how their hours, party habits, musical tastes, etc., will fit with your lifestyle.
    Good rent-paying residents are a valued commodity to apartment owners today and you deserve a clean, quiet, well-maintained home in which to live. It is important for you to select your first home recognizing not only the rental rate and amenitites but the level of service and care you will receive by the resident manager and staff.

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