Questions to ask before signing a lease

• When is rent due?
• Are there penalties for late payments? What are they?
• How long is the lease?
• After the initial term of the lease, will I need to renew for a year or will I be able to lease month to month?
• What are the lease breaking fees?
• Are there any application fees?
• What utilities are included in the rent?
• What is the approximate cost for utilities that are not included in the rent?
• Are there any costs for setting up the utilities that are not covered in the rent?
• Is parking included in the rent or are there any additional parking fees?
• Where is the parking area?
• How big is the hot water heater and is the hot water heater shared with any other apartments? (This is a relatively important question, if there is a small heater, or if there is one shared with your neighbor who likes to take hour long showers right before you have to get up, you may end up taking cold showers more often than you'd like.)
• How much is the security deposit? How much of the deposit is returned at the end of the lease? What will prevent me from getting my security deposit back?
• Is sub-leasing allowed?
• What happens if I accidentally break an appliance?
• How is routine maintenance completed for the unit? Are maintenance people on call 24 hours a day? If not, who should you call if there is an emergency?
• Am I allowed to paint the walls?
• Am I allowed to hang pictures with nails?
• Do you require renters insurance?
• Are there any noise level restrictions?
• Where are the smoke detectors and do they work?
• If there isn't an in-unit washer and dryer, where is the laundry and what is the cost?
• Can you get cell phone reception inside the apartment?
• Am I allowed to have pets? If I don't have one now, and I get one at a later date, will my lease change?