Moving into a new apartment can be an exciting experience. But if certain circumstances require you to rent an apartment without seeing it in person, all the excitement can easily turn into stress.
While touring a place in person before signing the rental agreement is ideal, we know that sometimes it’s just not possible. Thus, the best piece of advice we can give to someone who needs to rent sight unseen is to do a thorough research on the apartment that he or she considers renting before signing the lease. Here are a few useful tips on how to find out as much information as possible and prevent costly mistakes when renting an apartment without seeing it first.
Decide on Your Must-Haves
Once you know your destination, make sure that you take into account all the things that matter the most to you. Although this list will be different for every renter, some things you might want to consider are the community amenities and apartment features, access to public transportation, proximity to work, pet friendliness, and whether it’s a child-friendly neighborhood or not. Besides being pet- and child-friendly, our Sugarloaf Luxury Apartments complex is also perfectly located near schools, hospitals, pharmacies, restaurants, shopping centers, parks, and within a few blocks of the beach. As well, we have 3 military bases within 40 miles, with the nearest one just 21.9 miles away.*
Explore the Area Virtually
When moving to a new place, you don’t have to be physically present to learn about the area and its surroundings. Thanks to today’s digital advancements, you can find out everything about a location by simply using the internet. For instance, you can use the online databases that are dedicated to collecting and analyzing information on different locations across the US. As well, you can check the official city website, such as Destin’s official website, which provides information for visitors and residents. You can also turn to forums, where locals are ready to provide honest feedback and valuable insight into what it’s like living in the area.
Using tools like Google Street View is also paramount when checking out the apartment complex you consider moving into and exploring the nearby area. With the help of this tool, you can “walk” around the building and neighborhood to identify the nearest grocery stores, pharmacies, businesses, schools, and entertainment options. You could also look up reviews on different platforms, such as Google and Yelp. Once you’ve found enough information about the area and decided on an apartment complex, it’s time to choose the best apartment for you.
View Floor Plans and Virtual Tours
As you may know already, an apartment complex includes different types of apartments that can fit different needs, wants, and lifestyles. Luckily, the floor plans and virtual tours that most apartment complexes make available on their websites can turn the complex process of choosing the right type of apartment for you into a simple task.
In addition to checking out apartment floor plans, which provide a visual representation of the layout of different apartments from above, you can also find 360-degree and 3D virtual tours, which have become increasingly popular over the past years. With the help of virtual tour technologies, you can digitally explore every room of an apartment from different angles and measure with accuracy multiple elements in a room, including walls, furniture, windows, and doors. Another great feature is the dollhouse view, which allows you to get the full picture of a place and truly feel the flow of it as if you were there in person.
Since virtual tours deliver the fastest and safest way to rent sight unseen, we also make available virtual apartment walkthroughs on our website. If you intend to rent one of our apartments, please watch our 3D virtual tours to get a better feel of the type of apartment you consider renting.
Get As Much Information As Possible from the Property Management Company
Moving to a new location and renting an apartment without visiting it in person requires a leap of faith. But you can mitigate your risks by looking for the most reputable apartment complexes and property management companies with a track record of success, such as Sugarloaf Luxury Apartments. Once you’ve done your research about the area and read reviews about our apartment complex, you can contact us to confirm the availability of an apartment. As well, if you have any questions or concerns, you can call our friendly staff, who will offer you all the details you might need in order to ensure a smooth transition to your new home.
Don’t Throw Caution to the Wind!
Even if you’ve done all of the above to make sure that your new rental apartment will be a perfect fit for your lifestyle, moving to a new city and renting sight unseen can be overwhelming. However, using the tips presented above could save you from committing to a place that doesn’t fit your needs and wants.
*If you’re an active duty military member looking for a rental apartment in Destin, FL, you may qualify for a discounted security deposit. For more information, feel free to contact our professionals today!