WalletPrep worksheet · Housing
How to rent your first apartment
Name ____________________ Date __________
Key ideas
- Move-in costs about three months of rent. First month, a deposit, fees, moving and basic furniture add up fast. For a $1,200 rent, Priya needs $3,400.
- The lease is the whole deal. Anything not written in the lease, from a promised repair to free parking, is hard to enforce later. Get it in writing.
- Photos on day one protect your deposit. Record every room, wall, floor and appliance before you unpack. Send the landlord a copy so the date is on record.
Vocabulary
- Security deposit
- Money a landlord holds when you sign a lease, to cover damage or unpaid rent, and returns when you move out, minus allowed deductions.
- Tenant screening report
- A report landlords use to decide whether to rent to you. It can include your credit, rental history and eviction records.
- Emergency fund
- Cash set aside only for surprises like a job loss, a car repair or a medical bill. A common goal is 3 to 6 months of essential costs.
- Cryptocurrency
- Digital tokens whose ownership is recorded on a shared online ledger called a blockchain. They are not issued by any government and are not insured.
- Credit report
- A record of your credit accounts, payments, balances and some public records, kept by each of the three credit bureaus.
- Cosigner
- A second person who signs a loan and promises to repay the whole debt if the main borrower doesn't.
Work it out
Priya found a one-bedroom for $1,200 a month. The landlord wants first month's rent and a deposit equal to one month's rent. She has $4,000 saved.
- Application fee
- First month's rent
- Security deposit
- Utility setup
- Moving truck
- Bed and basics
- Move-in cash
- Saved
- Move-in cash
- Left after moving
Check yourself
Rent is $1,000. You owe first month, a one-month deposit, a $40 application fee and $300 for moving. What is your move-in cash?
- A. $1,340
- B. $2,000
- C. $2,340
- D. $3,340
A landlord asks you to wire a deposit before you can see the apartment. What should you do?
- A. Wire it quickly so you don't lose the place
- B. Decline and keep looking, since it matches a known scam
- C. Pay with a gift card instead
A landlord denied you because of a tenant screening report. What are you entitled to?
- A. Nothing, since landlords can deny anyone
- B. A refund of the rent you offered
- C. An automatic approval after 30 days
- D. The name of the report company and a free copy if you ask within 60 days
Your turn
List every move-in cost for a place you like, using the example as a template, and compare the total with your savings. Then pull your free credit reports so there are no surprises when a landlord screens you.
Answer key
How to rent your first apartment
Work it out
- Application fee$50
- First month's rent$1,200
- Security deposit$1,200
- Utility setup$100
- Moving truck$250
- Bed and basics$600
- Move-in cash= $3,400
- Saved$4,000
- Move-in cash− $3,400
- Left after moving= $600
- Priya adds $50 + $1,200 + $1,200 + $100 + $250 + $600 = $3,400 due before or right after she gets the keys.
- That is $3,400 ÷ $1,200 = about 2.8 months of rent.
- She has $4,000, so $4,000 − $3,400 = $600 is left. She keeps furniture to the basics and rebuilds her emergency fund over the next few months.
Check yourself
- C. $2,340 $1,000 + $1,000 + $40 + $300 = $2,340.
- B. Decline and keep looking, since it matches a known scam The FTC says never to pay for a place you have not seen, and that demands for wire transfers, gift cards or crypto are signs of a scam.
- D. The name of the report company and a free copy if you ask within 60 days Under federal law, the landlord must tell you the report was used, name the company and explain your right to a free copy within 60 days and to dispute errors.