The advertised rent is not the number that matters. The number that matters is what you'll actually pay in the first month and what you can expect to pay in year two. Those two numbers require six to ten additional data points per unit, none of which are on the listing page, most of which require asking the leasing agent directly, and all of which vary enough between properties to change the decision entirely.
The True First-Month Cost
Rent is the starting number. Security deposit, Application fee, Pet deposit, Pet fee, Pest control fee, Move-in fee, and Other up-front payments are the fields that sum to the true first-month financial exposure. A property advertised at $1,650/month with a $500 application fee, a $1,650 security deposit, a $250 pet deposit, a $50 monthly pet fee, and a $150 move-in fee requires $2,600 in cash before you've paid a first month's rent. A competing property at $1,700/month with no fees other than a $1,700 security deposit requires $3,400 but only the deposit is refundable.
Final rent is the negotiated number — the figure after applying Discounts, specials, deals that the leasing office offered. Concession tracking in a database means you have the offer in writing, referenced to the specific unit and community, with the date. Leasing offers that are made verbally and not documented tend to disappear between the conversation and the lease signing.
Rent History as the Forward-Looking Number
What were the typical rent increases in the last 1-3 years? is the field most apartment hunters don't ask for and most leasing agents prefer not to answer precisely. A unit at $1,650/month that has increased 8% annually for three years is a unit at $1,980 or above in three years. A unit at $1,700/month that has stayed flat for three years is a lower three-year cost than the one that started cheaper. Without the rent history field, you're making a static comparison on a dynamic cost.
Most leasing offices will give you approximate figures if you ask directly. Checking with current tenants in the building is another source. The field creates the discipline to ask the question for every unit you're seriously considering rather than only the ones where you thought to ask.
Unit-Level Detail
Bedrooms, Bathrooms, Area (square feet), and Floor with Unit number and Unit name identify the specific unit, not just the community. The same community has different units on different floors with different noise profiles, different light, different proximity to the parking structure or the trash compactor. Floor matters not just for views but for heat management — top floor units in warm climates run significantly hotter in summer. Area (square feet) is the field that exposes the difference between a "two-bedroom" that's 780 square feet and one that's 1,050.
Appliances included with the unit and Apartment amenities with Parking type complete the cost comparison. A unit that requires you to supply your own refrigerator, washer, and dryer has a higher effective cost than its rent suggests. Covered parking at a cost versus open surface parking changes the monthly expense. These fields make the comparison honest.
Will the unit be painted and cleaned prior to move-in? is the move-in condition commitment field. The answer should be yes, but having it in the record means you have the commitment documented if the unit isn't ready on move-in day.
Our rating is the subjective assessment that sits alongside all the objective data. Sometimes the data says one thing and the feeling walking through the unit says another. Both belong in the record.