You’re in college and dorms just aren’t your thing, so you decide to rent an apartment, or a room in a house with some other college students. It’s this time in your life, your first time living out on your own, that you need to start learning the true meaning of responsibility. Your rental record with even this first home or apartment can affect whether or not you can find a decent rental in the future, and it can also affect your overall credit.
It’s really not that difficult to be a good renter. Some rental places will refuse to rent to college students, thinking they will have parties and leave the place trashed when they move out. You just need to make sure you do the following things.
Always Pay Your Rent On Time
Paying rent on time shows that you are a responsible adult. Even if they money that is paying your rent is coming from your parents, making sure it is in on time is key to being a great renter and getting a good reference from your landlord when you are ready to move into a new place after school is done.
If you don’t pay your rent on time you risk getting evicted, which could mean a trip to court and you may still owe all of the rent due on your entire lease. If you don’t pay it, it can end up on your credit record and make it difficult to get loans, credit cards, and more.
Leave The Place Cleaner Than When You Moved In
When it is time for you to move out, make sure you clean the place well. Don’t leave anything behind that you brought in and don’t take anything with you that was there when you moved in. The best rule to leave by is to leave it cleaner when you move out that it was when you moved it.
That means sweeping, vacuuming, maybe event having the carpet professionally cleaned. Clean the inside and outside of the stove, and make sure to clean the walls. If you were given permission to paint the walls, but told you needed to paint them back to the original color, don’t forget to do it!
Never Break A Lease
Last, but not least, if you want to have a good rental history, never break a lease, for any reason. If you need to move, find out if you are allowed to find a subleaser. Otherwise you are very likely to find yourself in court owing the rest of your lease and you will lose having a good rental reference, which will make it difficult to get another renter to trust you.
College students are wise to search out rental places with short term leases, rather than signing on for a whole year. You don’t want to be stuck in a place in a town you don’t want to stay in after graduation, just because you have a lease and want to stay in the good graces of the rental universe.
