Tag: tips

Ask These Questions Before Renting Your Next Apartment

Posted on by abenson

Ask These Questions Before Renting Your Next Apartment

Looking for your new apartment is an exciting time, but it is also a big decision and you want to be sure you know all the facts before entering into a lease. Other than the standard credit requirements and application fees, it is important to note a couple of things before making your decision. Before you sign your lease, ask your agent these questions:

What utilities are included with rent?

Some properties will include heat, water, sewer, garbage, electric, lawn care, snow removal, or internet with rent while others may not offer anything. It is important to know what your monthly and annual expenses will be in addition to your monthly rent.

How does maintenance get done? What sort of maintenance am I responsible for?

Management companies may require you to do small maintenance tasks such as changing your furnace filters, switching the batteries on the smoke detector, and changing reachable light bulbs. If the maintenance team has to fix these things, you may be charged a small fee, so it is important for you to know what you are responsible for.

If you are unsure how to change your furnace filter, change the batteries on your smoke detector, or reset a GFCI electrical outlet, or any similar task, check out our Resident FAQs page or YouTube channel.

What are the policies I should be aware of?

Most companies will have pet, smoking, guest, parking, grill, pool, and/or noise policies in place.

What happens if I have to terminate my lease early?

In case you need to get out of your lease early, you will want to know what the consequences are. Depending on what the company’s policy is, they may take your deposit and/or require you to pay rent for the unit until a new lessee is found or until the lease ends.

Am I allowed to sublet?

Some property management companies will not allow you to sublet or rent out your apartment on site likes Airbnb. If you are considering subletting, be sure to talk with your manager or landlord beforehand to see if it is against the rental policy.

Where do I pay rent? What are the late fees?

You never want to miss paying rent, so be sure you know where you have to pay. Can you pay online? Do you have to pay with a check? Are there processing fees? You will also want to be aware of late fees in the event that you don’t get your rent in on time.

What happens when my lease ends?

Your lease may end up going month to month or the company will require you to sign another lease to extend your stay.

What sorts of things will keep me from getting my rental deposit back?

It is important for you to know what could keep you from getting your rental deposit back so that you can be aware of those items during your time at the property.

Can I make changes to the apartment?

In some instances, you may be allowed to make changes, but other times you may not. Don’t start a project on your apartment before knowing the rules.

If you are looking for your new home, contact us and we will happily answer all of your rental questions!

Tips & Tricks for Keeping Your Home Fresh

Posted on by abenson

Tips & Tricks for Keeping Your Home Fresh

Sometimes your home needs a deep clean. Spring cleaning is here so we’re helping by giving you some of our best tips and tricks on how to keep your living spaces looking clean and smelling fresh!

Glass Stove Top

The glass stove top can be a tricky one to keep clean, especially if the residue has been sitting on the glass for long periods of time. To prevent any damage to the stove top, it is best to remove any residue as soon as possible. One way to clean the surface is to evenly mix hydrogen peroxide, dawn dish soap, and baking soda. Use a brush with bristles to gently scrub the areas needing attention.

Washing Machine

To keep your clothes smelling fresh and your washing machines clean all you need to do is let the top load washer fill with water as high and hot as possible, add a quart of white vinegar. Let the washer agitate for about a minute, then let it sit for an hour. While you’re waiting you can use a toothbrush or similar item to scrub the creases and rims of the washer to make sure all parts are being cleaned. Once you feel the vinegar has set for a long enough time, you can let the cycle finish through. Lastly, run another wash with one cup of baking soda to neutralize! You may need to wipe down the sides after the process is complete. Enjoy your fresh top load washing machine.

Microwave

Get the stuck on food in your microwave to wipe off with no scrubbing! Take lemon slices and put them in a microwave safe bowl filled with water. Add a splash of vinegar. Place the bowl in the microwave and cook for 5 minutes, then let it sit for a couple minutes after cooked. Use a damp cloth the wipe out the stuck on grim and it will come off easily!

Marks on the Floor

If you have a clean tennis ball you can remove the marks and scuffs left on the hardwood flooring! Just rub the ball over the spots until they disappear.

These tips are just a few of the tricks you can use to make sure your home is feeling clean & fresh!

Your top 4 renters insurance questions answered

Posted on by abenson

Your top 4 renters insurance questions answered

When you are looking at apartments or townhouses, you are thinking about what the rent is, how much the utilities will cost, and what you will need for a down payment. Renters insurance is often forgotten about, but it is extremely important and necessary. That is why we have broken down the renters insurance basics and answered your top 4 questions.

Why do I need renters insurance?

Unfortunately, disasters happen.  If a pipe bursts, your apartment gets broken into, or a fire occurs, it is important that you have insurance to protect what you own. Insurance can end up saving you huge! If you don’t have renters insurance, you could be at risk of losing thousands of dollars. Many may think that they don’t need renters insurance or that the management company will assume responsibility. However, only the building itself is covered by the landlord. Your personal property is not included, and that is why some companies, such as Prairie Property Management, will require you to have renters insurance as a part of the lease agreement.

What does it cover?

Renters insurance covers your personal belongings as well as your liability in the event that someone is injured on the property. There a couple of different coverage methods insurance companies will use. They will either cover the cash value of your belongings (what they would be sold for today) or they will cover to completely replace the item. Often times policies that will completely replace an item are a higher cost since the pay out is higher.

As with any type of insurance, there is a deductible. Which means that you are responsible for the cost up to a certain amount. Say your deductible is $1,000, then you’d be responsible for everything up to $1,000 in damage. Depending on what plan you pick, there are limits to what insurance can cover and some items are excluded from coverage, such as jewelry.

The coverage may also cover additional expenses, such as if something happens at your apartment and you need to stay in a hotel for a couple of nights, it will be covered by insurance.

What does it cost?

Unlike homeowner’s insurance, renters insurance is very reasonably priced, with an average cost of around $16 per month according to PolicyGenius. The total cost per month is primarily based on how much your possessions are worth and what sort of deductible you want. Other factors include: if you are a dog owner, what security systems are in place, and your location.

Where can I purchase renters insurance?

There are a lot of companies that sell renters insurance and a good starting point would be checking to see if your car insurance company also offers renters insurance. Otherwise, a quick Google search will pull up several companies that will give you quotes online without ever having to talk to an agent, unless you want to. When you are looking for a provider, shop around a bit and get multiple quotes. That way you will be sure you are getting the exact coverage you need at the best price. The whole process could take you as little as 10 to 15 minutes but could end up saving you thousands.

Conclusion: Purchasing renters insurance is quick, easy, and totally worth it.

How To Effectively Prevent and Solve Roommate Drama

Posted on by abenson

How To Effectively Prevent and Solve Roommate Drama

There is a lot of benefit to having a roommate, including always having someone around to chat, watch movies with, and share the rent with. But sometimes things go awry and one or both of you ends up feeling upset, mad, or annoyed. To avoid this, it is important to be careful when picking who you live with and making sure you communicate expectations prior to moving in together.

Avoid potential problems by following some of these effective tips:

Communicate Early

Before you move in together, talk with each other about what your expectations are as well as your wants and needs. If you like to go to sleep early, talk through what time you expect it to be quiet. Talk about who will be in charge of making sure the electric bill is paid so that you don’t end up getting your power cut off. We recommend using a roommate agreement so that you are all on the same page with responsibilities, financials, and rules. Here are some of the main points to talk about:

  • Discuss what you will share, if you will be having friends over, and who will clean what
  • Talk financials and who will be responsible for what
  • Talk about shared spaces and private spaces

There are plenty of free roommate agreement templates online, here is one from legaltemplates.net.

Treat Them How You Want to be Treated

Follow the golden rule. If you want to be respected, you have to treat your roommate with respect too. Be considerate of their space and their belongings. Always ask before using something of theirs and they will hopefully do the same for you.

Ask the Right Questions & Listen

When a problem arises, talk about it early so that it doesn’t have the chance to build up. When talking, do it in person and not over text. Avoid arguing and instead talk with the goal of clearing things up. When you are initiating the conversation be sure you are on common ground and you aren’t interrupting them when they are doing something else. Consider scheduling a roommate meeting to talk about everything.

During your conversation be aware of how you are communicating. By asking questions a certain way and communicating constructively, you can keep things from getting heated. Do your best to stay calm and your roommate will most likely remain calm as well.

When your roommate is talking, listen to what they are saying and try and understand their point of view. Do your best to stay on point and avoid getting off track.

Some other tips:

  • Don’t attack them or spring the conversation on them
  • Try using phrases like “I feel. . .”, I understand what you are saying, but. . .”,  and “You could be right, but. . .”
  • Do your best to remain calm

Ask a Mutual Friend to Help

If the two of you aren’t able to come to a solution on your own, consider bringing in a third party. Pick someone who is neutral to mediate the conversation who can hear both sides and offer unbiased solutions.

Be Open to Compromise

Try your best to come up with a win-win situation. If both sides win a little bit, you are both more likely to be happy roommates!

While not guaranteed to work, these tips will hopefully have you on your way to a more peaceful home where you can enjoy the fun of having a roommate.

How to get $200 off your next month’s rent

Posted on by abenson

Refer a friend and get $200 off your next month’s rent

Friends make the best neighbors. At Prairie Property Management, when you refer a friend to your community and they sign a lease, we will give you $200 off your next month’s rent! Plus, there is no limit to how many you can refer. So if you refer 5 friends in a month and they sign lease at your community, you could get $1,000 off your rent!

To help you take advantage of this program and spread the word, we came up with a couple of ideas to help you make more referrals and save you money.

Host a house warming party

Invite your friends over and let them see your new home. Provide snacks, drinks, and give them a tour. If they seem interested in the community, connect them with your property manager.

Share your favorite parts about living at your community with your friends

Think about why you love your home and bring it up in conversation with your friends and coworkers.  If you have a community area, invite them over to come and see it.

Share the Prairie Property Management website with your friends

If one of your friends mentions that they are thinking about moving, send them to the Prairie Property Management website and show them which community you live in. Tell them what you like most about living there.

Share Prairie Property Management’s Facebook posts

Our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages are updated regularly making it easy for you to share posts and information. If you see a post about your community, share it to your own timeline and tell your friends that you would love to refer them.

Give us a follow on social media! We are on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn!

Create your own Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter posts

Do you love your kitchen or your living room? Whatever room you love, share a picture of it on social media. Tell your friends that you would love to refer them.

Tip: Use #lifeatprairieproperty to be featured on our social media pages.

Once you have a referral, visit our referrals page for more information.