When viewing an apartment before renting, compare the advertisement with the actual home, observe its condition and equipment, then check access and your daily journey. Record what works, what needs confirmation and any agreed repairs. A personal viewing supports your choice; it does not replace a technical assessment.
The photographs helped you picture yourself there. The viewing answers a different question: can you live here with your schedule and needs? Prepare your essentials so that the living room or view does not decide everything.
Prepare around your daily life
Confirm the address, availability, floor, included equipment and person meeting you. Bring your criteria, a phone for notes and a tape measure if useful. Ask before photographing an occupied home; avoid people and private documents.
For access needs, consider the entire route from street to door. “Lift” does not yet tell you whether a pushchair, wheelchair or main item of furniture will fit. Answering these questions matters more than a long list of decorative details.
Observe each room without unsafe tests
Look at walls, ceilings, windows and floors. Notice moisture or leak marks and ask about their cause and previous work. A repainted wall does not establish that there is no problem. A smell or stain also cannot diagnose its cause.
With permission, check taps, visible drainage, openings and safely accessible equipment. Do not dismantle electrical installations or manipulate gas connections. Safety doubts call for qualified advice, not an improvised test during a viewing.
| Observation | Question | Record to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Moisture mark | Cause, repair and follow-up? | Permitted photograph and written answer |
| Advertised equipment | Included, working, maintained by whom? | Agreed equipment list |
| Difficult window or lock | Repair before moving in? | Agreed work and date |
| Lift, stairs and entrance | Suitable for your access needs? | Useful measurements and constraints |
| Building charges | Which amounts and items? | Confirmed breakdown |
Article 5 of Law 67.12 provides, within its scope, for delivery of a home meeting the habitability conditions and equipment specified in the text. Your viewing checklist is an observation method, not a compliance certificate.
Listen to the home and test the location
Spend a moment quietly, with windows open and closed where possible. Ask about known noise sources and observe nearby activities. A quiet daytime viewing does not predict your evenings. If noise matters greatly, a second visit at your usual time can be more useful than a general opinion about the area.
Try the journey to work, studies or school. Check necessary shops and the walkable route to a stop. If you work remotely, use our new-home internet guide: an existing router proves neither a subscription available to you nor the speed you can expect.
Accept, request a correction or keep looking
A cosmetic defect may be acceptable if understood and recorded. A promised repair needs a description, responsible person and date. An unexplained technical risk remains unresolved even when you like the apartment.
We recommend confirming a few decisive points rather than seeking broad promises. You can accept a known defect, agree a correction or look elsewhere. Avoid treating a promise as completed work.
The BienLibre verification proposal distinguishes trust in an advertisement from checks on a property. It replaces neither your viewing nor a specific expert assessment, and cannot currently be ordered on that page. Direct contact mainly lets you ask the owner relevant questions with transparent terms.
Before leaving the viewing
- Compare the home and equipment with the advertisement
- Record observations without improvised diagnoses
- Check access, journeys and noise at relevant times
- Identify charges and repairs needing confirmation
- Separate deal-breakers from preferences
Once you choose, viewing notes are not enough for move-in. Prepare a precise condition report at handover so owner and tenant start from the same description.