{"id":2238,"date":"2018-02-09T10:56:03","date_gmt":"2018-02-09T15:56:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/?page_id=2238"},"modified":"2023-04-04T11:00:53","modified_gmt":"2023-04-04T15:00:53","slug":"renterstips","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/renterstips\/","title":{"rendered":"Renters&#8217; Tips and Resources for Off-Campus Living"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Renters\u2019 Tips<\/h2>\n<h4>What\u2019s your budget?<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>What can you afford?<\/li>\n<li>Security deposit, first &amp; last month rent<\/li>\n<li>How much financial aid will you get?<\/li>\n<li>What other bills?<\/li>\n<li>Renters Insurance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Is heating and electricity included in the rent? What is the cost of those utilities and additional ones? How much is the security deposit? Do you require a furnished apartment? What will be the cost of furnishing an apartment? How much will Wi-Fi, Internet, or cable TV cost? Do you pay for snow removal?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Renters Insurance is strongly encouraged<\/strong>. Your landlord will only insure the property only; you must purchase Renters Insurance to insure your belongings. In some cases parents&#8217; home-owner insurance may cover a student\u2019s possessions but probably not. Check with your insurance agent and make sure your personal property is covered.<\/p>\n<h4>What type of housing \/neighborhood is for you?<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Privately owned \u201cstudent\u201d housing<\/li>\n<li>Apartment complexes<\/li>\n<li>Single unit apartments<\/li>\n<li>Shared house in family residential area<\/li>\n<li>House converted to apartments<\/li>\n<li>Room in owner occupied home<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Choose a neighborhood that matches your own lifestyle. Who will be your neighbors? \u00a0\u201cStudent\u201d housing means there will be more 18-22 year old neighbors who are more likely to follow a similar daily schedule. \u00a0The neighbors in family residential areas tend to be quieter and expect you to be quiet too.<\/p>\n<p>Consider complex regulations or town codes about parking, noise and occupancy. Apartment complexes often offer more amenities; like on-site laundry, parking lots, and snow plowing.<\/p>\n<h4>Location<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Walking distance<\/li>\n<li>On the bus route: Community Connection or Orono Express<\/li>\n<li>Your own transportation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Do you have transportation available to travel to; the university campus, work, grocery store, laundromat, and bank? \u00a0\u00a0Does the location have access to public transportation?\u00a0 What days\/ hours do the buses run?<\/p>\n<h4>Lease<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>12 month lease or month to month<\/li>\n<li>Can you sublet<\/li>\n<li>No lease<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Carefully review the lease before signing. What is the length of the lease? Does the lease cover the summer?\u00a0 Are you allowed to sub-lease?\u00a0 Who is responsible for the damages with a sub-lease? \u00a0Are you living there month to month and\/or at the discretion of the landlord? Student Legal Services can review your lease, if you have questions or concerns.<\/p>\n<h2>Model Lease<\/h2>\n<p>The Maine Attorney General website provides a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.maine.gov\/tools\/whatsnew\/index.php?topic=AGOffice_Consumer_Law_Guide&amp;v=article&amp;id=27935\">model landlord-tenant lease.<\/a><\/p>\n<h4>Roommates<\/h4>\n<p>Are you willing to share your space?\u00a0 How will expenses be shared?\u00a0 How will conflict be resolved? How will lease agreements be upheld if roommates&#8217; relationships dissolve?\u00a0 Did everyone sign the lease?<\/p>\n<h4>Safety<\/h4>\n<p>Does the apartment have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and sufficient exits?\u00a0 If you have children, is the property safe for children?<\/p>\n<h4>Other Considerations<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Pets \/Extra fee<\/li>\n<li>Parking\/ Plowing<\/li>\n<li>Furnished \/ Unfurnished<\/li>\n<li>Garbage removal &amp; recycling<\/li>\n<li>On site landlord<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Are pets allowed and is there a pet fee required?\u00a0\u00a0 Is there enough off street parking places for all the vehicles?\u00a0 Who is responsible for snow and garbage removal? Is the property owner on site or easily accessible?<\/p>\n<h2>Renters Guides: helpful resources for finding your off- campus home<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #3366ff\"><span style=\"color: #000000\">BestColleges.com\u00a0 provides a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bestcolleges.com\/resources\/student-renters-guide\/\">Renters Guide f<\/a>or college students navigating the off-campus rental market.<\/span> <span style=\"color: #000000\">Check it out for helpful information about choosing your off campus housing. <\/span><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Renters Insurance<\/h2>\n<p>Guides and tips to Renters Insurance<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneygeek.com\/insurance\/renters\/compare-quotes\/\">How to Compare Renters Insurance: Tips for Finding the Right Renters Insurance Company &amp; the Best Rates &#8211;<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneygeek.com\/insurance\/renters\/resources\/rental-assistance-rights-guide\/\">Protecting Yourself as a Home Renter<\/a> &#8211;<\/p>\n<p>QuoteWizard\u00a0 provides a<a href=\"https:\/\/quotewizard.com\/renters-insurance\/college-students-and-renters-insurance\"> Rental Guide<\/a>\u00a0 with\u00a0 more tips on Renters Insurance<\/p>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<h2>Other Resources<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a title=\"Pine tree Legal Association \" href=\"http:\/\/www.ptla.org\">Pine Tree Legal Assistance<\/a>: Renters&#8217; Rights in Maine<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ipropertymanagement.com\/laws\/maine-landlord-tenant-rights\">iPropertyManagement&#8217;s guide<\/a> to landlord and tenant rights<\/li>\n<li>Student Legal Services: Student Legal Services is an arm of the Univ. of Maine Student Government which provides legal assistance to the undergraduate student population of the University of Maine. Student Legal Services can provide consultation with leases and landlord\/tenant concerns. Their office is on the first floor of Memorial Union and can be reached at 207.581.1789<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Renters\u2019 Tips What\u2019s your budget? What can you afford? Security deposit, first &amp; last month rent How much financial aid will you get? What other bills? Renters Insurance Is heating and electricity included in the rent? What is the cost of those utilities and additional ones? How much is the security deposit? Do you require [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1141,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2238","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"taxonomy_info":[],"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"","author_link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/author\/"},"comment_info":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1141"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2238"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2238\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2905,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2238\/revisions\/2905"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/cntsp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}