Watch Me Move

So this past week I moved into my first apartment over the course of this week and it has been a lot of fun but a lot of work as well. I was very picky about my first place and did some shopping around. It took me a little longer than I wanted to find a good place and move in but my place was worth the wait. Here are just a few tips that I used in my apartment hunt. Hope they help!

1. Know your area! For me this is what took soooo long lol. I am not familiar with Philadelphia and did not know what neighborhoods were good to live in. I decided to start walking around, asking people, and search the internet to find a neighborhood where I felt comfortable. It took a few weeks but I finally found the perfect area for me.
2. Decide what is most important to you. After you find your optimal neighborhood it is time to figure out your wish list. I had to ask myself what were the most important things to me and what things I was willing to budge on. For me the two main things that I would NOT go without were safety and parking. Parking is insane in the city and I wanted to make sure that there was a parking garage or space that I had for my car. I did not want to have to search for street parking every night when I came home. I was willing to live a little farther in order to have those things.
3. Price it Key but... The next thing is to figure out your budget. This is a very important thing to know. For me I knew how much I was willing to spend AND took into account other expenses that went along with the apartment i.e groceries, cable, internet, electricity, water,,etc. Since I am living alone I knew that a lot of my utilities would be low but I still budgeted them in. Try and find places that have some utilities included. You may have to pay a little more but if you set a budget for yourself then you should be fine. I know for myself and my class schedule I am home during the day so I do not have the lights on. I open the blinds. That helps with my electric bill. I was fortunate to find a place that has gated parking and included water in the rent.
4. ...Money Talks! I fell in love with a neighborhood and a particular complex and it had most of the things on my wish list. When I asked to see a unit I was shown 2. The first a studio that was WAY to small for me and the second was the one I ended up moving into. The only issue was it was out of my price range I had set for myself. So that is when I did a little thinking and A LOT of negotiating. I spoke to the property manager and explained that I was a student and what my budget was. I told him that along with first month and a security deposit  that I would pay 5 months ahead of time. This would mean he did not have to pay to advertise the unit and that he had guaranteed rent for 6 months. I also asked if he could do a few updates to the apartment and it worked! Always remember that people love it when you can pay months ahead of time. It is a luck of the draw when they choose someone that can pay month to month. Things happen and you never know if they will come up with the rent. Paying a few months down gives you some room to make a FEW demands as well as get the price lower. It gives the property manager security. 
5. Relax. After you move in a lot of things will come at you. For me I wanted to make sure I had everything I needed by the time I moved in. That DID NOT happen lol. There are small things that you think of that you will need once you get into the space. I have been living at walmart, big lots and a few other stores for the last few days. Every time I think I am done I sit down and realize there are things I am still missing. The first 2 days I was so stressed and then I realized that moving into a place is a journey. Of course I am going to forget stuff but that is a part of having a first place. I have learned to relax and go with the flow and also that Walmart and Big Lots are my new best friends :)

So there are my tips for finding and moving into a new place. If you stick to your guns you'll find something great. I hope these tips help. Any questions just ask. Until next time......