Moving into an Apartment Checklist

I recently moved into a block of apartments / flats and was totally exhausted from shifting all those boxes and I totally forgot to check a number of things that I really should have known from day 1. Ideally, the previous owners or the landlord would have provided a useful ‘welcome’ pack with the info and I would have avoided the scenario where I was rushing around trying to find the mains water tap to stop a water leak! If you’ve had that happen to you, you will find this Moving into an Apartment Checklist come in mightily handy! Here’s what you need to remember to check when moving into an apartment:

Communal Areas

• How do you access the communal area(s); key, fob, code?
• Locate your mailbox
• Do you have the right key to unlock the mailbox? Did it work?
• Find out where the rubbish/refuse/garbage goes
• Find out where your allocated parking space is (if you are lucky enough to have one) and make a note of the parking bay number
• Do you need to have a resident parking permit?
• Where can your visitors park?
• Do visitors with vehicles need to have a permit?
• Make sure that you know where the stairs are in case the lift doesn’t work
• Where is the bicycle rack (if there is one)?
• Where’s the fire alarm located in the communal corridor?
• Where’s your nearest emergency exit / the back stairs?

Around the Apartment

• Is the apartment entrance door peephole clear?
• Does the apartment entrance door security latch work?
• Where is your water stopcock located?
• Where is the water meter?
• Who is the water supplier?
• Where is the electricity meter?
• Who is the electricity supplier?
• If there’s gas, who’s the supplier?
• Where’s the master control switch for controlling your heating?
• Where’s the master control switch for controlling your hot water?
• Have you located all the window keys?
• Does the smoke alarm work?
• Are all the light switches operational?
• Is the flooring clean, in good working order and unmarked?

Check Appliances

• Does the water run from your kitchen taps?
• Does the water leak from the kitchen tap?
• Is the kitchen sink sealed against the counter top to prevent leaks?
• Is the fridge working?
• Does the fridge light come on?
• Freezer work?
• Freezer light come on?
• Oven work?
• Oven light come on?
• Does your Cooker work?
• Does the extractor fan work?
• Does the extractor light come on?
• Is the extractor fan filter clean?
• Microwave work?
• Microwave light come on?
• Dishwasher work?
• Washing machine work?
• Dryer work?

Check Bathroom/Shower

• Do you have hot and cold running water?
• Ensure that the taps don’t leak
• Is the shower head holder doing its job?
• Does the bathtub have a plug?
• Does the sink have a working sink plug?