Establish a Timeline for Your Apartment Search

Moving is one of the more stressful things that you will have to undertake in your life. Unfortunately, you can't put the rest of your life on hold when you are searching for an apartment. For this reason, it is important to get yourself organized as quickly as possible and make sure that you have taken into account everything that finding and moving into a new apartment will require.

Ideally, you will want to give yourself between 1-2 months for your apartment search and move. There is a lot that goes into finding an apartment for rent and you want to give yourself the best opportunity to get your ideal apartment rental.

• Week 1: Make a list of your necessities (commuting ease, pet-friendly, etc.) and amenities (laundry, parking, pool, etc.) and compare the listings in your desired area to your budget.
• Week 2: Determine which locations are most favorable and compare rental rates with your list of wants and needs. Do some research on the neighborhoods and areas that you are interested in to ensure that it will be a good fit.
• Week 3-4: Time to hit the street. Expect to devote at least some time each day to looking at rental units, meeting landlords and checking out locations.
• Week 5-6: Get ready to move. Make arrangements for moving all your personal belongings and furniture. Walk through your apartment with your old landlord so that you can get your security deposit back and review your rental agreement with your new landlord.

Your apartment search will be much easier if you have planned on looking for new apartment rather than being forced to try to find a rental after a relocation, a new job or other circumstances that can necessitate moving.

Most landlords can be accommodating, but getting stuck with a week or even a few days in between moving out of your old apartment and moving into your new one can be extremely inconvenient.

You definitely do not want to delay your search to the point that you are forced to spend an additional month at either your old place, or a friend's couch or at a hotel.