First week with the keys
The first week is not decorating. It is: can you sleep, wash, charge a phone, and find the trash.
Tonight
- Sheets and a pillow on a bed you can actually lie on.
- Towel, soap, toilet paper.
- Phone charger and a known outlet.
- Water and a light snack so you are not hunting at midnight.
- Keys and wallet in one place you will remember tomorrow.
Tomorrow morning
- Coffee/tea/breakfast from what you actually drink.
- Find trash, recycling, laundry, and the mail area.
- Write the wifi password where a guest could read it.
- If something is broken, text or email the landlord with a photo. Org note, not a legal claim.
This week
- Finish the utilities and internet start board so account nicknames live on paper, not in a text thread.
- Unpack kitchen and bath first. Living room can wait.
- Fill the building-facts page: address, parking, trash day, spare key.
Done enough is livable. Pretty can wait.
Want this as a printable? The 12-page First Apartment Move-In Kit is $12. Undated. Fill it in pen.
Get the kit — $12Not legal, landlord, utility, or medical advice. Rules vary by city and building. Ask your landlord or a qualified professional when something is unclear.