Apartment hunting hacks. Got any others?
happyinspector.com
happyinspector.com
2) Is the apartment under Rent Control or Rent Stabilization (a NYC thing, mainly)?
3) Why did the prior tenant leave (because they were living next to a bastard blasting music all night?)?
4) Where is mass transit located?
5) When is garbage and recycling pickup?
6) What time is the usual mail (USPS) delivery?
7) Does the lease say the landlord can enter the apartment "at will" (if so, get some goddammed hidden cameras)?
8) Where's the closest hospital, police precinct, firehouse?
9) Is the area served by taxis or car services?
10) How far are you from social services (assistance as well as an unemployment office you might have to visit)?
11) Are there any probation offices, drug treatment centers, or criminal courts nearby?
12) How close is the nearest bar and do they play live music (not what you want nearby during the summer)?
All I can think of at the spur of the moment.
A landlord will never give you a truthful answer to #3 if that would cast the apartment in a negative light. You should try to talk to the prior tenant directly if at all possible.
In California an "entrance at will" clause in a residential lease is unenforceable. The reasons and notice requirements that a landlord may enter a tenant's apartment are set out in law. If you see in it your lease it does suggest that your landlord doesn't know the law very well though.
2. Check the voltage output. Many older places can't handle too many wattage and the circuit breaker can flip easily. Sucks for tech folks.
3. Drive around and check how ease of turning out into traffic is. Some places royally suck and makes it insanely more time consuming.
4. Personal but ask about typical things like washer, dryer, dishwasher, etc...
5. Check how strong or weak a toilet is. I've had a toilet in the last that almost always clog even with constant flushing to ensure nothing is in there. They eventually had to replace the entire toilet.
6. If its a brand new construction, especially large condo complexes, stay clear. Tons of random issues will come up.
7. Check deposit and move in fees, policy.
Alternatively, make sure the place is near transit so you don't need a car at all.
It's only really useful if you're looking to live in Manhattan, and probably completely skewed by Sandy... but interesting nonetheless.
Here's the TOW centre write up with some of the other hacks: http://towcenter.org/blog/tow-center-mapathon-2012/
Even better if you can get inside the apartment at night. It's probably when you'll spend most of your time there, and the lighting and neighbor noise levels will be different.
How about checking for Aircraft traffic?
Good one with the aircraft. Another one is to check crime stats.
I failed to do that when deciding between two apartments in Pasadena, CA. The one I picked was a block away from the Rose Parade. That was very annoying.
It's not perfect -- and certainly in some cases is way off -- but it's pretty new still and its a good start.