Tag Archives: apartment inspection checklist

Apartment Cleaning Tip: Baseboards

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apartment baseboards

Baseboards don't have to be the worst part of your cleaning routine: Here are a few tips to make them easy.

Neat Freak, or just a tidy housekeeper? At some point, whether it’s daily or once a month, everyone cleans their apartment. While vacuuming, dusting, and mopping come natural to us, other cleaning projects slip our minds, and those are the ones that, when we move out or choose to do our spring cleaning, we are surprised to find filthy. Baseboards are a commonly forgotten cleaning project that, when left alone, can build up unsightly bits of dust and other small particles that came through your apartment. Usually baseboards prove difficult to clean thanks to their location at the bottom of the wall, but we have a few helpful tips to lighten their burden on your cleaning habits:

  • For the ones that are easily accessible, spray a sponge mop with your favorite all purpose cleaner, then run it along the baseboards.
  • All-purpose cleaning wipes are usually quick remove grit and grime without too much scrubbing, so consider using those to get your baseboards shining.
  • Use a dryer sheet to clean your baseboards or after you’ve scrubbed; they leave a light coating that helps repel dust.
What are your quick cleaning tips for your apartment? Share your tips in a comment.
Photo via Flickr. 

Ways to save while renting an apartment

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Stockbridge, GA luxury apartments business center

Living in an apartment affords many individuals with luxuries dissimilar living in a house. Generally, the apartment manager or leasing office handles the maintenance of the apartments. Maintenance includes electrical, plumbing, and structural issues regarding the apartment. Maintaining the landscape or the “grounds” is also a part of the apartment community’s duties. Are you aware of the separation of duties between you and your apartment community?

Besides saving money on maintenance, apartments might also provide discounts or other money saving features. Some apartment complexes provide fitness centers, swimming pools, business centers, free Wi-Fi, and furniture. Some apartments provide short term leases to business professionals. These leases can include furniture and other apartment furnishings.

WiseBread suggests that you learn about apartment community’s special amenities. It also suggests that you learn about discounts with utility and service companies that are offered to its residents. Can you offer any apartment money saving tips to your TriBridge Residential neighbors?

Image courtesy of the Villas at Eagles Landing

Does your apartment have a strange odor?

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Do you scrunch your nose when you walk into your apartment?I almost walked out of my apartment this morning without emptying the trash. I thought about the smell that I could walk into this evening. I turned around and emptied both my kitchen trash can and my bathroom trash can.

Simple things can cause your apartment to have an odor. If you have pets, they might need a bath with a fresh smelling shampoo. If you cooked eggs, chicken, or any other meat, take out the trash that contains the meat wrapper. If your feet become sweaty and your shoes have an odor, try leaving them outside for the first hour that you come home. Then sprinkle some powder in them and bring them inside. These tips might keep odors out of your TriBridge apartment.

If you already have a distinct odor in your apartment, try assessing the cause. Take out the trash and clean the garbage disposal by dropping a few ice cubes into it with a couple of drops of lemon. If this doesn’t help, check your shoes, your dirty clothes, your carpet, or your pet. Baking Soda can help keep your refrigerator from holding bad odors. It works well if you clean your refrigerator once a month.

Do you have any tips for keeping bad odors out of your apartment?

Image courtesy of sass_face via Flickr

Apartment Checklist: What to Look for Before Signing a Lease

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Apartment ChecklistAfter searching for a new apartment and exhausting all of your resources, it seems like you have finally found the community that is perfect for you.

Now what?

There are several things you need to do and check for before moving into a new apartment or community. First of all, you want to tour the actual unit you will be renting. While touring the potential apartment, check for the following items:

  • Plumbing: Faucets, toilets, and pipes should all work correctly.
  • Safety items: Smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, and fire extinguishers should operate correctly and be readily available.
  • Appliances: Oven, microwave, refrigerator, and anything else offered by the community should function properly.
  • Doors/walls/paint: Doors should have no trouble closing in their frames. Wall cracks, peeling, or a combination of the two may need repairs or be a sign of water seepage.
  • Electrical: Lights should work correctly. Bring an item to plug into the outlets throughout the unit to ensure they work properly.

The main thing to remember is not to rush through an apartment inspection. You want to make sure you are comfortable and safe for as long as you live in the community.

Once you find an apartment/community that meets all of your needs, just run through this checklist, and you will be good to go!

What are some other tips for inspecting a potential apartment before signing the lease? Share your suggestions by leaving a comment!

Image courtesy of Damon Duncan