The scenic Virginia Tech campus. (Flickr)
The start of the fall semester at Virginia Tech means college football is finally back in session, college basketball is right around the corner, and housing season is getting started. Students at Virginia Tech begin to look for housing for next year as soon as late September every year. As current and recent students ourselves, we understand the difficulty of finding a house that fits all of your needs, but it’s also important to think beyond just finding the right Virginia Tech off-campus housing options for rent. Finding the right landlord is just as important.
You don’t have to lease from an unresponsive landlord, though. Here are a few key factors to look for in your landlord before signing your lease:
- Response Time: How quickly do they respond to your calls and emails when you’re setting up a showing? Warning! If you’re having trouble getting in contact with them now, it’s probable that this is going to carry over when you’ve got water leaking from the ceiling after a harsh rainstorm.
- Online Reviews: If you research your potential future landlord and find nothing but bad reviews, do NOT sign a lease with them. If they received a one-star rating by the majority of their previous tenants, they received it for a reason.
- Tardiness: If your Virginia Tech off-campus housing landlord is late to show you the house, beware, this is a sign that they do not respect you or your time.
- Repairs: If you’re viewing a property in Blacksburg that requires maintenance before moving in, make sure to clarify the repair dates before moving in. If they are unsure or do not give you a specific date the repairs will be finished, this could be because they are not in active in maintaining the property.
- Leasing Contract: If your landlord has passed all of the above, the last step is to review your lease. If there are many errors in your contract, hesitate before signing a lease with them. Shoddy contracts show that they are not knowledgeable in the legal side of property management. Not only could that negatively impact them in the future, but you could also get tied up in unfavorable legal circumstances.
Each landlord interacts with tenants and responds to maintenance issues in their way. To help you have the best housing experience possible, here are a few landlords you might want to consider in the Blacksburg area. Continue reading