NGPF Activity Bank

Budgeting #19
Teacher Tip Video

COMPARE: Find an Apartment

Finding an apartment can be a fun, but sometimes challenging, process. It’s important to find an apartment that fits well with your lifestyle,
budget, and other personal preferences. Therefore, it is important to take the time to do a little research and reflect on what you want in an
apartment before you even begin your search. In this activity, you will have the opportunity to think about what you want in an apartment,
calculate how much you can afford on housing, and find an apartment that fits your needs and wants.

Part I: Renting an Apartment 101

1. Watch this video on how to rent an apartment and write the tips the video provides in the space below. Then, highlight (or put a
star next to) the tips you think are most useful for you.
● Read your lease carefully.
● Pay your rent on time.

2. Was there any criteria that was not mentioned in the video that you would also want to use to evaluate an apartment? If so,
write it below.
Find something that fits your most important needs well.

Part II: Calculate How Much You Can Afford

Before you can start searching for an apartment, you need to know how much you can spend on housing. Use Georgetown University’s
tool, The Economic Value of College Majors, to find out what your average starting salary is for the major you plan to study in college. Or,
you can use the average starting salary for college graduates in the U.S., which is about $50,000 . Then, answer
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the questions below.

3. What is your average starting salary?

64 thousand
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http://time.com/money/4777074/college-grad-pay-2017-average-salary/

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4. A popular rule of thumb when renting an apartment is to spend no more than 25-30% of your salary on housing. Using this rule of
thumb and your average starting salary, calculate how much money you afford to spend on housing each month below.
Around 20 thousand

Part III: Start Your Search

Now that you know how much you can spend on housing each month and you have some criteria to evaluate whether an apartment is a
good fit for you or not, it’s time to start your search! You will conduct online research to find three apartments in a specific city that you
would consider living in. The questions below will guide you in this process.

5. First, you have to select a city to look for apartments in. If you have done the COMPARE: Select a City to Live In activity, use the city
you chose at the end of the activity. If you have not done this activity, choose a city that you are interested in living in. Write the
city you would like to live in below.
Beverly Hills

6. Use the websites below to find three apartments you would be interested in living in. Make sure that the rent and other housing
costs fit within your budget (your answer to question #4). Fill in the table with information about each apartment.

● Craigslist.org ● Hotpads.com ● ● Padmapper.com

Apartments.com

You can also use other apartment hunting websites, including the ones on this list, to conduct your research.
Apartment 1 Apartment 2 Apartment 3

Name of Property & 13337 Westcove Dr. 265 Spalding Dr. 119 N Maple Dr.
Address/Location

Rent per Month 8500 7200 16,000

Utilities - Are utilities They’re included They’re included They’re included

included? How much extra
are utilities if they are not
included?
 Amenities - Describe There’s a spa, a big backyard, It has a pool and a garage. It has a pool and a garage.
any amenities the and has a good location.
apartment offers that
you think you
would use, if any.

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Fees - Application fees, 8,500 deposit fee 14,400 32,000
deposit, etc.

# of roommates/housemates 2 2 2

Transportation - How close It’s located kind of on the hills It’s right down the road. It’s very close to transportation.
is the apartment to public so it’s not too close.
transportation, freeways, etc?

Renters Insurance - Do You don’t need it and I wouldn’t Nope. Nope.

you want to buy (or are buy it.
required to buy) renters
insurance? How much
would it cost per month?
(If you’re not sure, write
“Unknown”).

Furniture - Is the I would spend at least a It is furnished. It is furnished.

apartment furnished? How thousand.
much do you think you will
spend on
furniture for this apartment?

Any other pros/cons Again I really like this location. It’s nice to have a pool and a
place for a vehicle.

Link to Apartment Listing https://www.apartments.com/ https://www.apartments.com/ https://www.apartments.com/

221-s-carmelina-ave-los- 265-s-spalding-dr-beverly-hills- 119-n-maple-dr-beverly-hills-
angeles-ca/j29 ca/mpx5 ca/8e7vb

Part IV: Select One Apartment

7. Out of the three apartments you selected above, which one would you prefer to live in? Explain your reasoning
below.
 I’d prefer to live in the first one just because it has qualities that I would prioritize while looking for a home.

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Part V: Reflection
8. Think about your apartment hunting experience. What about the experience was surprising or new?
Actually this was really fun. Thinking about what I want in an apartment is really important when making a
decision, and may be more stressful during the time I will pick out my apartment. My aunt looks at apartments and
houses for fun and now I understand why. It will definitely be hard to narrow down a house from the vast amount
of options.

9. Reflect on your emotions during the apartment search. How did your emotions change over the duration of the
apartment search?
I definitely was more nervous in the beginning and began to be more sure when I found something I really liked.

10. If you were to do this apartment search again, what would you do differently? Why?
I would probably look at things other than a pool and maybe focus on places that have utilities such as a laundry.
Also it’s important to make sure there are grocery stores and other important things near the apartment.

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