Prepare Your Teen for Their First Apartment
Is your teen or young adult ready for an apartment of their very own? Does your teen fully understand what all will be needed to create a home of their very own? Here, you'll find a bit of information that can help you prepare your teen for their very first apartment of their own.
Help Them Understand Renters Insurance
One of the most important things that your teen will need when renting an apartment is renters insurance. Without renters insurance, the contents of the apartment would not be covered in the event of a fire, burglary or vandalism. Renters insurance is much cheaper than homeowners insurance, but it works in a similar way. The main difference is that the renter's insurance does not cover the building—just the contents of the rented apartment.
If there is an onsite storage area in the building that is in a different area than the apartment, the insurance policy may need an additional rider to cover anything that your teen will store in there. To ensure their renter's insurance is correct, ask for help from services such as Woodmansee Insurance Inc.
Help Them Use Utilities Wisely
One thing that many teens don't fully comprehend is the fact that all of the utilities will need to be paid for—the lights, water, sewer, gas, cable, phone—it all comes at a cost. Sit down and explain to your teen how these billing systems work and what they can do to cut costs. For example, instead of getting cable television, stick with just internet and stream movies and shows through available apps. Since they probably have a cell phone, they probably won't need a landline—they can save a lot of money right here.
Help Them Make Security Deposits
When renting an apartment, your teen will likely be asked for first and last months' rent. One of those two months' rent will be held until your teen moves out of the apartment. If everything is in good condition, the deposit will be returned to them. They need to understand that if they do any damage to the property, they will lose the deposit and could be billed for the remaining balance of repairs.
This is a huge step, but it can be a great start to the rest of your teen's life. Help them prepare for what lies ahead and you'll be on your way to an empty nest just waiting to be filled with grandkids in future years. Hopefully, the advice listed above will help you and your teen prepare for this next step in life.
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