Hunting for a rental to reside in is stressful enough without the renter’s dilemma, which consists of deciding between renting a privately-owned home or an apartment. Although working with a private owner seems more personal, it may not be your best option as a renter.
Here are five reasons why:
Resolving maintenance requests takes an extended amount of time
Private owners don’t usually regard their properties as daily businesses. It may take several efforts to reach a landlord about maintenance issues. In fact, you have less access to your landlord in general. You can’t walk to a front office to file a request, and you can easily end up playing phone tag.
Apartment communities offer professional management and on-call repair services that are readily available. For example, if you were facing issues with an inconsiderate neighbor, our Heers Management administration would address the problem for you. Or if you were to run into plumbing malfunctions, a repairman would resolve the inconvenience promptly.
Apartments are best when affordability is priority
Renting a private home is more costly than renting an apartment in more ways than one. Aside from monthly rental rates alone, a bigger space, which is synonymous with houses, requires more power and water.
You will save a significant amount in monthly utilities bills by choosing an apartment. You will also save money in maintenance and landscaping, which is usually the renter’s responsibility when renting a house.
Annual lease renewals are not guaranteed
Private owners can choose to sell their property at any time. Once your lease is up, you may not have the option of staying another year, even if you wanted to. There are no guarantees required of a private landlord, which removes the confidence of knowing you have a place to live once your lease is up.
With apartment living, dependability is ensured as long as you renew your lease within the designated and agreed-upon time frame.
Apartment amenities are plentiful
There are little to no amenities that come with a house unless you are paying extra to have them. Most apartment properties, including our communities, offer well-maintained amenities that are attractive and convenient. Examples include pools, club houses that can be used for parties, playground equipment, community theaters, complimentary coffee or snacks, workout rooms and picnic areas.
Large apartment communities may also offer yearly scheduled events for tenants.
Non-standard contracts are standard in privately owned rentals
When renting an apartment, contracts signed are governed by a management company’s rules, which implement the state’s standard rental contract – all the verbiage is approved by the government to protect both tenants and landlords. A private owner is not required to use this contract, so if legal issues develop, your contractual agreement may result in unnecessary disputes.
A state-approved rental contract also includes addendum guidelines, which streamline the process of updating original lease terms. Having everything in writing, clearly and indisputably, is key. Private landlords don’t always follow these best practices.
If you are still working toward making a decision about apartment living, please contact us for additional information. We are happy to share more about our apartment properties, whether you are relocating to Phoenix or Las Vegas. Our goal at Heers Management is to do our best to help families and inpiduals find the best apartment property that meets their needs and preferences.