Rental Living

Rental Living is the paperwork, deposits, repairs, and everyday mechanics of being a tenant. Leases are dense; deposits are a source of anxiety; landlords vary from responsive to non-existent; and the rules for who fixes what are rarely written where a renter can find them easily. Our guides in this section cover the questions that come up over a normal year of renting: setting up utilities in a new apartment without paying the deactivation fee, moving-in checklists that protect your deposit, when to log a repair request in writing and how to escalate one that is being ignored, mold you can spot yourself and how to report it correctly, and what to do about a landlord who has stopped answering. Written for renters, tenants, and anyone thinking about signing their first or their tenth lease.