Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with apartment

This is stressing me in.

Evstar — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:33:14 -0800

What is the best way for me to find an apartment in Lyon, with a kitchen, for 10 months to a year? I'm a Canadian in Toronto with a French Visa good for a year. I'm leaving at the end of August to stay in Lyon for 10 months to a year. My girlfriend and I need an apartment apartment within a reasonable distance of the University of Lyon for those ten months. She is a student, I am not.

We will arrive in Lyon on the 29th of August.

Should we hire a real-estate agent? Search online classifieds ourselves? Would we be crazy to show up in Lyon on the 29th in hopes of finding a place for September in the few days left in August? Is there a better way to go about this?

Oh, and we're on a student's budget. The two of us will be splitting rent halfway.

I would love to hear from people who live or have lived in Lyon, especially from someone with a similar travel experience.

Thanks.

Is the carpet-cleaning clause in this lease shady?

Cogito — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:11:35 -0800

I'm about to sign a lease with a peculiar clause about carpet cleaning. I have had a lot of leases before and I don't recall ever seeing anything quite like this. I'm wondering if it's just a standard thing I haven't seen before, or if it's unusual or even unlawful. The term goes like this:

"Carpets must be PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED by a Landlord approved cleaner at the end of the lease term. All belongings/furniture must be removed prior to the cleaning. Carpets may not be cleaned with rental cleaning equipment or any unauthorized cleaning firms.
CHARGES: $50.00 service charge plus carpet cleaning expense. Hard surfaced floors must be swept, then cleaned with proper cleaners.
CHARGES: $35.00 per hour."

Those last two lines are referring to what will be deducted from the security deposit if the term isn't satisfied by the tenant.

Is this just a case of the management company pushing costs onto the tenant? I'm used to having the management company do a professional cleaning between tenants rather than making the outgoing tenant responsible. I seem to remember when I was living in Michigan I read something about it being illegal for a landlord to require a tenant to pay for cleaning services, but this is in Iowa, so it may be different. Here's the response I got from the management company when I asked about it:

"Yes, we do require that you have the carpets professionally cleaned at the time you move out. We also require tenants to clean the carpets at least once each year that they reside with us. This is standard practice in this area with all the property management companies that I have come into contact with.

"Most tenants who have lived with us for an extended amount of time usually have their carpets done once a year, on or around the date that their lease would normally expire. We do require a copy of the invoice from the cleaning company as proof that the carpets were cleaned, otherwise, we would charge the tenant a service fee for setting up the service plus the tenant would be charged the actual cost of the carpet cleaning.

"I am surprised that this is the first time you have come across this; this is not uncommon in this area."

Is honesty the best policy?

Anonymous — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 08:39:34 -0800

How should I handle a broken window at my apartment? Last night, I was standing out on my balcony with some guests when a june bug flew into my face. I was startled, and jumped a bit. Unfortunately, I was standing next to my window and my sudden movement shattered the glass.

My guests suggested telling my landlords that I didn't break the window, but came home to find it in such a state due to someone throwing a stone or a large stick at it in my absence. I wanted to run this situation by the hivemind before proceeding.

Obviously, I'd like to get this taken care of without losing my deposit or damaging my rental history. I live in Washington state, if that makes a difference. Should I tell the truth when reporting this damage, or go with the recommendation of my guests? Would either scenario make that much of a difference? The true cause of the damage is accidental, but I'm worried that won't matter. I'm in good standing with my landlords, love my apartment and have no intentions of moving out anytime soon.

What should I do?

How noisy is noisy in Toronto?

mariokrat — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:49:56 -0800

Is it (will it be) that noisy at Charles Street around Bloor and Yonge? I'm moving to Toronto with my wife next month to go to graduate school. We haven't found a place yet, and I just got an e-mail this morning from the U of T telling me that I've been offered a two-bedroom place at their 35 Charles Street West family housing building. Sounds great, except we need to reply in two days, and the letter says:

It is a busy, noisy neighbourhood. Immediately north of building 30, there are two new high rise building developments planned, one of which is already under construction. If your family is bothered by noise, particularly if one or more members in the family will be at the apartment throughout the day, you may be very unhappy living on the north side of 30 Charles St West as it is closest to the construction.

We're currently living in a central part of Calgary and have both lived in noisier parts of Tokyo and Yokohama so a good amount of city noise won't be of much concern to either of us. Neither me nor me wife need to be in the apartment during the day (although it would be nice if I could study there from time to time), but I would be unhappy if we were woken up every Saturday morning at 8 from the nearby construction.

I'm going to ask a friend in Toronto to try and see the room, but I'm not sure if he'll be able to make it before Thursday.. So if you're in Toronto, have you noticed any huge amounts of noise and dust in the area of Charles Street? Should I look for other things, or would it be silly for me to pass on this cheap, central apartment?

Also, has anyone lived at the Charles Street residences? Are they any good?

Anyone got a room for rent in Fullerton, CA? How 'bout advice on said subject?

malapropist — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 05:36:18 -0800

I live with my parents, and I'm searching for a place to live for the first time. Somewhere near Cal State Fullerton. A question about credit checks, and how to improve my search. Last week, I posted an ad on Craigslist in an attempt to assemble three other people to find a 2 bedroom with. Unfortunately, it seems like some kind of catch-22; the roomies want you to have an apartment already, and the landlord wants you to have the roomies already. I've found a couple of people who were down to move in, one for as long as 72 consecutive hours. Unfortunately, they keep finding their own rooms to rent. Does this approach (the "find people to find an apartment" technique) often work?

I found a place that meets most of my criteria, though as the search wears on I'm finding my criteria less and less important. The landlord will be telling me today whether we passed the credit check, but big whoop because the other two roommates who submitted applications/credit check money have moved on. The landlord was firm on getting all of us to submit our applications together, no incremental submissions as I gathered roomies. So now I'm wondering just what it is that the landlord receives. Does he get a credit report, or just a number? Is it for all of us with no distinction between us, or is it three reports, one for each of us? If mine is okay (which it should be) but the other two were not as good, what's the likelihood of him allowing me to try it again with different roommies? If that were the case, would it be reasonable to have to pay for another credit check for myself? Would he even tell me if I asked whether it was my credit personally that was the problem? If it helps, this is a little four-plex with a single owner, not a large development or prop mgmt company.

Also, if anyone has general advice about finding a place to live, at the beginning of the school year, near Cal State Fullerton or Fullerton JC (which is where I'm attending this fall) in general, please. I'm getting desperate here. What's a good alternative to Craigslist? Roommates.com seems a bit stale.

BTW, I found myfirstapartment.com here on AskMe, and it was a big help. Thanks guys!

Help me keep a chinchilla without cockroaches.

Brainy — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 13:19:44 -0800

How do we keep a chinchilla in an apartment where roaches might be present without killing the chinchilla or attracting tons of bugs? My girlfriend wants to bring her chinchilla to our apartment and I would like that too. However we've seen more than a couple of roaches (including one gigantic one in the sink the other day*) I'm worried we'd pretty much be bringing a roach attractor into the apartment.

The cage she currently has is homemade and constructed of wood and wire...something roaches would have no problem getting through. There are solid plastic cages, but air holes = bug holes. Are there any bug proof cages out there?

What about rodent food that wouldn't attract roaches?

Will we have to be more careful with the insecticide, is the chinchilla in more danger because of his size?

My girlfriend and I (and Kirby the chinchilla) thank you!

* Bonus question. we sprayed Raid Roach Max into our sink to kill it. What's the best way of cleaning this poison out of our sink?

Or I could quietly jiggle

Polychrome — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:51:09 -0800

How can I work out in my apartment without bothering my neighbors? I've struggled with ways to stay in shape for a long time now, and finally I found something that worked and that I had stuck with every day for the past week: workout videos. I was so happy that I finally was getting in a sweaty workout every day and I was feeling really good about myself, until my neighbor just knocked at my door a few minutes ago demanding that I "cut out all the stompin." I apologized and told her I hadn't realized, and she huffed off without saying anything. I don't want to bother my neighbors (I know how annoying it is when the same lady and her family blast motown into the wee hours of the night all weekend so that I can't sleep) but I really want to work out. I hadn't considered noise to be a problem because, aside from the occasional blasting music, I have never heard a peep from my neighbors; I've also done my own workouts before without complaint (but never stuck to it for more than 2-3 times a week), but the building seems very well insulated. I am in a corner apartment on the second floor of three.

So how can I work out in my apartment without bothering this lady? I would really prefer to continue working out in my apartment, and it also really bothers me that I shouldn't be able to do something like that in my own home. I considered going down and asking her if there was a good time for me to do this, but I am a little intimidated of her. This lady was severely ticked off. I don't think she really ever leaves her apartment and I work all day.

Also, I am sure people who suggest this mean well, but I do not want to join a gym. I have several reasons for this that you might want to dispel (cost, location, time, fear of working out in front of other people, lack of knowledge of equipment, etc. etc.) but the bottom line is that even if I got a gym membership, I wouldn't go. Going for runs or bike rides around here also isn't a very viable option (biking was actually my first choice before I started this) as I live off the highway with no running/biking area. The workouts I've been doing are cardio/strength, but I'm willing to change them as long as I get in a good, sweaty workout. I need to do something that I will stick with for now and that is working out at home, so any ideas?

Avoiding eviction after minor dog incident?

Hollow — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:33:38 -0800

ApartmentFilter: My friend's dog got our of her NYC apartment today, and a neighbor overreacted. Now the neighbor is trying to get her evicted from the building (her lease goes all the way til February). Should she be worried? Can she fight back? My friend has two formerly abused dogs that she adopted to save them from being put down. Today one of them managed to work all three of her locks and get out into the hall. A neighbor's kid was out in the hall, and the dog bounded up to the kid happily, playfully, excitedly, as dogs are wont to do. The neighbor kid freaked, and the neighbor came out. By the time my friend got out there, her dog had peed the neighbor's floor, which my friend knows that he only does after being hit. The argument got heated, and the neighbor called the police. When the cops arrived they were very nice and did not press any charges, telling my friend to just be more careful. Nonetheless, the angry neighbor is pressuring the building manager to cancel my friend's 12 month lease and kick her out.

My friend's building allows dogs, and her dogs would never hurt a fly. Still, her neighbor is claiming the dog attacked the kid, and between the dog getting loose and peeing the floor, she is worried that management might find cause for canceling her lease.

Any advice for her?

Moving to State College

billysumday — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 10:16:04 -0800

Advice, suggestions, recommendations for a couple looking to rent an apartment or house in State College, Pennsylvania (Penn State). 30 year old Ph.D. candidate and her 28 year old boyfriend are moving to State College at the end of this month/beginning of August. Where is the best place to live? House or apartment? We don't want to be next to all of the undergrads but we also don't want to live too far from campus.

Any insight into cool places/areas to live would be helpful. We are hoping to spend $600-$800 for a two bedroom - is this reasonable?

What does an insomniac do with his bedroom?

Tomorrowful — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 08:26:03 -0800

One of the most common recommendations for insomniacs is to not use a bedroom for anything but sleeping (and sex, though I suspect that's a compromise to reality). And that's helped a lot. But... now I've crammed my entire life into my living room, because I have a one-bedroom apartment. And it's cramped! Right now, my bedroom consists only of bed, dresser, and a couple of bookcases that wouldn't fit in the living room. My living room, on the other hand, has to be my office (desk), library/study (bookshelves/comfy chair), entertainment space...

So: How do other insomnia-fighting folks deal with the fact that we're not exploiting the bedroom's space as much as other folks might?

I could make it a kind of storage-space, putting all of my shelves and such there, but I really want to have books 'on display,' because I'm a bibliophile and having visible shelving is a key part of 'home' for me. I'm not sure if putting up a big divider in the bedroom, and using half of it for an office, is viable - has anyone else tried that and found it to be a sufficiently 'different' space to still get the anti-insomnia benefits?

NB: I recognize that, ideally, I'd only live in apartments with very-small bedrooms and larger living rooms, or multiple bedrooms, but I wasn't able to find anything quite like the former, and my budget prevents the latter. Maybe in a couple of years...

Jane Smith lives in 3A and everyone knows it

pinksoftsoap — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 10:43:32 -0800

Does everyone really have to know who lives in my apartment? I just moved to a new building. The mailboxes are the standard metal ones in a row on the first floor with the apartment number scribbled on the front. On my first piece of addressed mail, someone (I assume the mailman?) had written "Please put your name on the mailbox or no mail can be delivered." I never had this problem in my old place- doesn't the postal service drop mail in based on the address and not the name? I guess it's a little out of my comfort zone to have my name displayed down there for all to see. What can I do? I live in New York. Thanks!

Help with hot summer nights.

carsonb — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:17:07 -0800

Why is my bedroom consistently 10 degrees warmer than the rest of the house, and what can I do to cool it off? Here's a rough diagram of my apartment's layout. There are 4 vents for the AC, and the one intake is in the ceiling of the living room. I have vertical blinds on my south-facing window that I keep closed all day, and an oscillating fan that blows into my room from near the door. Trees block the morning sun onto my window, but noon to sundown I get direct sunlight. The vent in my room blows cold, and is not blocked at all as far as I can tell. The problem persists throughout the night. What can I do?

Am I responsible for my roommate's bills if I move?

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 06:39:17 -0800

I am moving out before our lease expires. Am I liable for the rest of our future bills? I cannot stand my roommate. I am moving out of our shared two-bedroom apartment a couple of months before our lease expires. I have not told him yet.

Both of our names are on the rental agreement, but only mine is on the bills, and he pays me back his equal share of them.

Our rental agreement states that the tenants are responsible for all utility bills except water.

The agreement also says that if tenants move out before their one-year-long lease expires, they are responsible for giving the landlord the rest of the rent that they owe. It does not state what should occur with the utility bills in such a situation.

I do not think I should be responsible for helping to pay for my soon-to-be ex-roommate's electricity and gas and whether he is able to foot the bills on his own is of less than zero concern to me.

What do you make of this? Does this mean that if I move out before our lease expires, I can hand the landlord the rest of the rent that I would owe until then, and stick my roommate with the bills? If so, how can I transfer them to his name if he refuses to take responsibility for them, especially since I do not know his social security number?

What documents should a Canadian bring along when apartment-hunting in New York?

limon — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 09:58:24 -0800

Canadian moving to New York in September. Apartment-hunting in August. No credit history. Going to be a graduate student, so no fat salary either. But I can get a guarantor with ample funds, and I can pay several months in advance, if it's necessary. What documents should I bring with me to New York? Also, is this going to be impossible? How much time should I set aside for apartment hunting? (Is two-three weeks too little?) I'm looking for an affordable 1 bedroom in Washington Heights or Inwood. Any other relevant tips much appreciated.

How to find an August sublet in Seattle?

grouse — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 13:09:05 -0800

I'm moving to Seattle! How can I find a sublet for August? My job starts in September, but I'm going to move there in August to get settled in and started up. I want to get a sublet before I move from the UK so that I can find a more permanent lease on the ground, looking at the places myself. Also, my new employer refuses to give me a binding contract until I have proof of my PhD which I won't be able to get for another week or so. So I'd rather not commit to a year-long contract until I have the commitment for the job.

I'll be working in the university medical center. I'm interested in living in Wallingford or Fremont, so I wanted to find a sublet there for a month to get used to the area and make apartment hunting easier. But most of the sublets available right now seem to be for July, or July and August, rather than just August. I think there are more sublets available now for the U-District in August, but August sublets in Wallingford might come available later, or as people realize they can't find a renter for July.

Unfortunately I'm going to start traveling on 12 July so I ought to have this nailed down by then. Do you think there is any point in waiting a few days to see if something in my preferred areas comes available, or should I just start looking for something anywhere today?

How to move quickly?

clcapps — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:48:35 -0800

We're moving! Any tips on doing so quickly and efficiently? We were going to renew our lease, but right before we did we magically found a bigger, nicer apartment for about 60% of what we're paying now! But now we need to be out of here by the first!
Anyone have any tips/lifehacks on making the moving process as quick and painless as possible?

How do I patch up a hole in my wall?

invisible ink — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 20:08:11 -0800

When I had DirecTV installed in my apartment, the technician drilled a hole in my wall to string the cable through to the satellite (outside on my balcony). Now that I might be moving, what's the best way to cover up the hole? What do I need to buy? I know nothing about home repair/hardware, so please....the more details, the better!

How to stop an annoying buzzer next door?

i less than three nsima — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:19:15 -0800

What can I do about an obnoxious parking lot buzzer in the building next door? My apartment is a first floor place on an intersection in Philly. About 50 yards down the block from where my bedroom windows are located, there is the exit gate for the covered parking lot of a large high-rise apartment complex. This gate has an automatic system that opens from the inside (it is only 1-way), presumably with a key card or something.

My problem is that attached to this gate is a very loud and very obnoxious warning buzzer (for pedestrians, i assume, although my block isn't that busy) that goes off so long at the gate is opening, opened, or closing. This amounts to about 30 seconds of loud buzzing - think an elementary school fire alarm - for each car that exits. As this is a big apartment complex, cars are exiting the parking lot at almost all hours of the day.

This buzzer is seriously driving me crazy! I am a pretty insensitive person to city noise, but the irregularity (and yet constant, at all hours) and piercing quality of this alarm buzzer is really horrendous. It keeps me up at night, it wakes me super early in the morning, I really can't stand it!

What can I do? Closing the windows helps a little, but I'm too cheap for A/C, and its just too hot to not keep them open. Isn't this kind of obnoxious noise "disturbing the peace" or something?

How can I officially get dibs on this NYC room share?

lxs — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 14:45:17 -0800

Getting an room in NYC question...with a twist. I'm currently deep in the throes of trying to find a room share situation in NYC while living in the midwest. I finally came across something that sounds really promising - the location is absolutely perfect, the price is right, the roommates are exactly the type of people I was hoping for, and the start date for the room's availability is exactly when I was hoping to move.

The bad news is that flights are freaking expensive right now and I really need my money for those first few months in New York. Also, I work long hours and many weekends and so it's really not going to be easy for me to take a trip to look at the place. I've seen a good number of pictures of it, however. I also have a good friend who lives in the neighborhood and knows it well, who is willing to go take a look at the apartment for me.

My question is this - the people living in the apt and I seem to have hit it off pretty well, and it seems like they want me there enough, based on our phone conversations, that they are willing to let me move in without interviewing in person. If this ends up working out, what is the safest way for me to send payment for a security deposit, guarantee that the room will be held for me, etc.? I would not be on the lease for the apartment. The people definitely seem trustworthy, but I want to cover all my bases and not put myself in a precarious situation financially.

Input on Denver apt. - urgent!

McBearclaw — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:02:09 -0800

Does this Denver apartment location sound good? Hi, Denver Me-fites. My girlfriend and I are looking at an apartment in the vicinty of the McDonald's at Kremeria and Colfax. We like it a lot, but we just wanted to see what the hivemind thought about that location in terms of safety, convenience, etc. Basically, we want your anecdotes - and we want them fast!

There's something strange in the neighborhood...

Metroid Baby — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 11:14:47 -0800

The apartment building I'm moving into might be haunted. I know it's not rational to believe in ghosts, but I'm kind of superstitious. The other day I was Googling the address where I'm moving in a few weeks, and I found a couple mentions of the building being haunted. My reaction has ranged from "cool, ghosts!" to "oh no, ghosts!" to "psht, ghosts don't exist." My inner Scully tells me it's ridiculous to even entertain the notion of a haunted apartment, but my inner Mulder wants to believe. And I've got to admit I'm not a very good skeptic in practice, especially not when it's midnight and I'm all alone in a dark apartment.

So my question is twofold. The first part: how can I tell if my apartment is haunted, and what should I do if it is? I'm not sure how you know if a funny sound, a stray thought, or a sudden cold feeling is due to a paranormal presence rather than a more mundane source. On the rare occasions in the past when I've sensed something strange, I've been able to rationalize it as my senses playing tricks on me. What should I be looking for, and how do I know whether it's just my imagination? And if ghosts do exist, and if they exist in my apartment, how can I coexist peacefully with them? Real or not, the last thing I want to do is piss them off.

The second part: How do I keep a healthy sense of skepticism about this and avoid turning into Scooby-Doo when the lights go out? There is a part of me that strongly wants to believe in the supernatural, but I want to keep that in check. I don't want to get carried away, and I don't want to become paranoid or gullible. And I definitely want to be able to sleep at night.

For the record, I've visited the building twice, I like it, and it seems like a perfectly normal apartment building to me.

I feel a little silly asking this question, but I'm curious all the same. Thanks for your help!

EthicsFilter: Who should pay when a three way rental split gets interrupted by a breakup?

Anonymous — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 20:59:30 -0800

My boyfriend and I moved into an apartment with a classmate of his almost 2 years ago. We found a place in Park Slope, Brooklyn, which is notoriously expensive but which we were able to all afford by splitting the rent three ways. Our room was really big, with room for both our desks and a bed. His room is about half the size but he also got the whole hall closet. Now that my boyfriend and I have broken up and he's moved out, we have a little problem. When my boyfriend moved out, I stayed for a few months paying both of our rents (yes, I had to borrow money from my parents, something I'm not thrilled about but I couldnt find a new place). Now I've found a new place and our landlord has OKd me subletting the big room for the next 5 months until the lease is up.

Heres the problem: My roomate wants to find a subletter that will pay 2/3 of the rent (1,300) for that one room while he remains paying 700. The room and the apartment are nice for the neighborhood, but its still a little steep for someone, and if it were me, I would think it unfair that I would be paying twice as much for a room that isnt even twice the size. I'm worried we wont be able to find a subletter who will pay that much.

The way he sees it, its not his fault that we broke up, so why should he have to pay any extra rent? He thinks if we cant find a subletter who will pay 1300, then I should subsidize the rent and pay a hundred dollars or so a month. I understand his point of view, but he took a risk by living with a couple and the payoff for him was huge: there is no other way he would have been able to afford such a nice apartment in Park Slope if we had not been splitting the rooms three ways. So I feel that he should either eat the extra money to make a more fair rental agreement with the subletter, or we should at least split the cost.

This is tricky situation. I dont want to be unfair to my roomate, but I also dont think its fair for me to have to pay a hundred bucks or more a month for a place I dont live in anymore. What do you think?

Guide me to a smooth move-in and making it my home.

cgomez — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:02:04 -0800

As a first-time renter, what should I do to avoid problems down the road, what will I forget to buy that I need, and how can I make it my home? I'm a soon to be third-year college student moving from the dorm life into an apartment of my own about a half mile from campus. What I'd like to know is what are some mistakes that new renters make that I should avoid and how can I protect myself? How crucial is renter's insurance (I have a few computer and would probably have a semi-nice HDTV)?

I'll be purchasing most everything for the apartment from Amazon due to it being tax-free for California and having Prime (proposed items here). For furniture, I plan on picking up the basis on the cheap from Craigslist. When I first move in, I plan on taking many photos to document the condition of the apartment - would digital photos be suitable as evidence should anything ever happen with a dispute over the security deposit?

And lastly, how can I make this place my home? That is something I've never been terribly good at - I'd like to give the place some personality, but of course, there are strict limits as to how I can modify the residence. Help - any suggestions/advice is appreciated, even if it might seem really obvious!

House vs. apartment. Are the costs of maintaining a house roughly less, the same as, or more than levies on a comparably sized apartment?

lottie — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 20:20:39 -0800

House vs. apartment. Are the costs of maintaining a house roughly less, the same as, or more than levies on a comparably sized apartment? I live in and pay the mortgage on a large Sydney apartment (condo, for the US readers) with quite steep quarterly levies of $1000 which cover the maintenance of security parking, pool, spa, sauna, gym, gardens, and a caretaker who we can call at certain hours of the day to report trouble with any of these "trimmings". All very lovely, but $4000 a year is a lot to pay for facilities I can only occasionally make use of. In addition, the body corporate consistantly threaten to introduce eye-wateringly steep "special levies" from time to time to pay for building maintenance. So much so, that I fear missing an apartment meeting because I might miss the chance to know why we're paying an extra $1000 this quarter or other. It happens from time to time, and I'm scared of it.

I have begun fantasising about selling up and buying a similarly sized free-standing house. Doubtless this house would defnitely not have the pool etc that the apartment has. Indeed, it would not even have secure parking, but I figure it might be cheaper in the long run, and things like paint colours externally would be all my choice.

So, am I kididng myself? Do homeowners spend as much on annual maintenance, above and beyond mortgage etc as apartment owners do? More? Is the apartment saving me money because other people are fussing over the business of running the place, leaving me happily ignorant of the day-to-day demands?

Any thoughts about the relative merits? I know this isn't a simple comparison, but perhaps some of you have weighed up a similar thing.

What happens when the bank forecloses on your apartment?

christinetheslp — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:58:19 -0800

We just found out that our landlord is facing foreclosure. How screwed are we? My husband and I rent a flat in Milwaukee, WI. We found out today through public court records that a bank has filed for foreclosure against our landlord. We haven't heard anything from the landlord, but he's not the best at communicating things to us, so this is not shocking. We currently live here without a lease...my husband signed a one year lease in October 2005, but when it ran out the landlord never asked us to sign a new one. He just accepts our rent check every month, and we just keep living there.

We have no experience with foreclosures, so we're wondering what to expect. If the bank does foreclose on the property, what happens to us? Can we expect to stay in the apartment after the foreclosure? Will we get a certain number of weeks notice that we'll have to vacate? How long does a foreclosure take? We'd especially love to hear from anyone who has been in a similar situation. Thanks!