MACOMB, ILL. -- Apartment shopping can be difficult for anyone, especially in a town you are unfamiliar with.  This KHQA Safe Family Report has some tips on what you should look for when you look for a new place.  Macomb community development coordinator Ed Basch recommends using common sense. Make sure the structure is sound and ask to get a tour of the apartment before you sign a lease.

The city of Macomb does inspections on apartments for three reasons.  Newly registered apartments have to be inspected within 30 days. After that, they will go through a mandatory inspection every three years. Also, if a tenant has a complaint, the apartment will be looked at. All of those reports are kept in City Hall.

"In order to find detailed information about a particular property, they would have to come to the City Hall and fill out a Freedom of Information Act request and then we would give them whatever we can," said Macomb Community Development Coordinator Ed Basch.

With that FOIA request, you can get copies of past inspection reports on the property. Those will be good indicators of the current condition.

Here are some things you should look for before you sign a lease:

-Working windows

-Deadbolt locks

-Water pressure

-Water stains on walls or ceiling

-Mold

-Functioning appliances

-Roof and siding

-Porch or deck is structurally sound

Also, make sure you read and re-read your lease.