If you’ve recently moved out of home and into a rented property to start your studies, here are a few facts you should know about the property you’re living in and your rental agreement, to make sure you know what you’ve signed up for.

Only what’s in writing is binding

Before signing your rental lease, you should make sure that your rental agreement includes all the concerns and amendments you discussed in person with your landlord regarding any issues and preexisting matters that you don’t want to be held accountable for. Protect yourself by double checking that everything you discussed with your landlord is in writing in your lease. If there’s any information you don’t understand, don’t be afraid to ask questions, you can even ask your landlord to make it clearer before you sign anything. You may also want to have a look at ‘Frequently Asked Questions for Tenants’, which may answer some of the questions you might already have with regard to renting a property.

Pet policies

If you love your puppy so much that you want to take it with you when you move out of your home, find out whether any pets are allowed in the property you will be renting before you bring it along. This may not have been mentioned in your rental agreement, and most properties have strict rules regarding which types of pets you can have on the property. If you and your landlord have agreed to the terms and conditions of you keeping a pet on the property, again, make sure that it’s included in writing in your rental agreement to avoid any conflict further down the line. 

Penalties for decorating the walls

Before you drill any holes to hang any artwork on the walls of your new rental, make sure you’re allowed to, in order to avoid any penalties. Your rental agreement may require you to get written permission before adding any decorations to the walls. Making any changes to the walls might need to be approved by your landlord if you don’t want to risk losing your security deposit.