What should one look out for when looking for and renting an apartment?

Question

I have a friend moving to the Boston area (probably Allston) soon. She and her roommates will be looking at a few apartments and will need to sign a lease. What are some things that she should look out for? Scams? Unnecessary fees? Lease problems? Any specific information for this area as well as general information is appreciated.

Answer 1

Cockroaches, bedbugs, and apartment tenants.

Answer 2

Visit with the neighbors.  If they are unhappy , they will tell you. /

Answer 3

Do a written Move-In Inspection with the landlord... Actually look around the whole building and neighborhood to see what the general atmosphere is like... Never ever never be late with rent and get receipts for your payments... Define to your satisfaction the "jointly and severally" clause (in fact, read and understand each and every clause of the lease as it answers 75% of the questions I've seen here)...  

Answer 4

First > the cost of living in Boston is outrageous, so finding anything affordable will be difficult.

Second> what I've found is that many places want you to pay first & last month's rent in advance, plus a security deposit > so you're looking at some really big bucks to start with.  Where I live now, the law says the deposit can be up to 1½ times the monthly rent.  

Third, Boston is served by several subway lines > driving in that city is near impossible as the streets are narrow & change names every few blocks, & the drivers are lunatics.  It'd better if your place is within walking distance of the subways.  When I lived there, the lines were color coded > the Red Line ran north & south.  

Fourth, Boston is a college town, state capitol, & medical & insurance city.  There are lots of things to do, about 50 centers of higher learning in & around the city, & lots of pubs & restaurants to hang out at.  

Fifth, always read the lease, pay close attention to the amounts, terms & conditions, & who the neighbors are.  Younger ones tend to be loud.  Older ones tend to hate noise.  

I loved that town!