Comparing rental properties is obviously something you'll get quite good at out of necessity. After all, unless you have chased and acquired your dream home to rent, chances are you have entered into the new rental home search with an open mind and a spirit of discovery. Indeed you may find that similarly listed properties for rent may be quite dramatically different when you're actually visiting them.
I've outlined some important criteria you should use to determine your ideal rental apartment. I've also created a checklist to help you assess the specific features of a rental home you are looking for. Now it's time to help figure out which rental home is better than the others you've looked at. The easiest way to do that is with my simple checklist below. Instead of trying to write down all the various costs and pros/cons for EACH property, I think I've developed an easier way to see which places make the cut.
Below is a checklist with positive statements that you determined which location or locations embody. So if Location #1 and #2 have rent within your budget, you would check off both #1 and #2 for that corresponding statement. By the end of the list a quick glance will tell you which column has the most checkmarks and thus give you a better idea of which property had more to offer in a home for you.
Bear in mind, this is just a first step in sorting and eventually dismissing properties that do not make the cut. This checklist has room for only 3 properties. But you can easily reuse the list in sets of 3's for additional properties. In fact, this checklist chart lends itself perfectly for a rental property search consisting of half a dozen or more properties visited.
Remember to print out the page and make a few copies so you can do this quick comparison checklist test for all rental properties you are currently evaluating.
| RENTAL #1 _________________ RENTAL #2 ________________ RENTAL #3 ________________ | |||
| #1 | #2 | #3 | Positive Statements (Check if yes for all applicable locations) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental is within my budget and/or good value |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental includes most or all utilities |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental does NOT include most or all utilities |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental is located in one of my ideal/top choice locations |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental availability fits in with my preferred timeline (ie. move in date) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental Period (ie. lease, month-to-month) is desirable |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental type is my ideal choice (ie. home, apt, condo, etc.) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental has on-site or nearby laundry facilities |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental (and building) fits smoking needs (ie. non, or smoking-friendly) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental (and building) fits my animal needs (ie. no pets, pet-friendly) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental is ideal for my situation (ie. family, children, single, roommate) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental seems clean and well-looked after (ie. unit, common, grounds) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental (and building) has good perks (ie. internet, pool, backyard, etc) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental has good transportation nearby (ie. parking, buses, walking routes) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental seems to have a good landlord/management company |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental has a lot of storage, space, square footage |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental comes how I want it (ie. furnished or unfurnished) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental (and building) looks safe (ie. other tenants, physical, community) |
| ☐ | ☐ | ☐ | Rental deposit reasonable (ie. amount, process, conditions) |
