“[I’ve] never really picked a house, I’ve always just agreed to live there” Liza Dietrich, a senior, said of her housing search. As the terribly cliché saying goes, a rolling stone gathers no moss (unless you are a certain member of the actual Rolling Stones, in that case you have Kate Moss*). That maxim is certainly true with Liza’s Athens housing history: three different apartments in three years.
A unique student, in that she lived off campus as a sophomore, Liza’s first off-campus apartment was an apartment at Mill Street Village with her brother, Jake. Sophomores can live off campus with relatives if it’s approved by the university, something Liza said was much easier to do than she expected. Since she and her brother were in a rush to find a place to live (having proof of somewhere to live is a must for applying to live off campus as a sophomore) they just decided to try Mill Street Village. Liza saw a sign from the highway advertising available apartments and it seemed like a good idea. Utilities were included in her $500 dollar a month lease, even basic cable and internet, which is a plus for apartment living. One of the drawbacks of living at Mill Street Village was that the apartment had no washer or dryer and the laundry facilities on site were expensive.
I have a slight conflict of interest when it comes to where Liza lived her junior year. She was my roommate at the University Commons. I was invited to live with a couple of other girls at the Commons, but that fell through (which happens a lot with searching for housing in groups) and I needed two other roommates. Liza agreed and we found a fourth roommate, problem solved. However, we signed the lease the first week of October our sophomore year, because we were told that we wouldn’t be able to later on in the year. We were also asked to sign the lease for our senior year at the end of September, after living together only a month, which seems like a bad idea looking back on it. At the Commons all bills are included except for cable/internet and electric, and there is a washer and dryer, which are assets to apartment living.
For her third apartment Liza lives in a house on Shafer; a two bedroom place in a house that is split into four apartments. She had a puppy (something most apartment complexes won’t allow) fall quarter, but took him home when he got too big. She has to pay more bills than she ever has before, but doesn’t think it is too bad. Her room is bigger, but it has no closet. There is an awesome deck, but the bathroom is small. She really likes her roommate, though. She also had to find someone to sublease her room at the Commons. She found someone on Craig’s List. Essentially she put up an ad and sent e-mails to everyone who posted that they were looking for somewhere to live, it worked.
Sometimes it is a trade-off when trying to find a great place to live. You have to decide what you want and try to find somewhere that is a blend (or a compromise, we can’t always get what we want) of all of your requirements. Remember, you can find a place, even if it’s last minute.
*I actually searched "rolling stone puns" and came up with this article, I didn't just make something up. Yes, I Googled "rolling stone puns."
A unique student, in that she lived off campus as a sophomore, Liza’s first off-campus apartment was an apartment at Mill Street Village with her brother, Jake. Sophomores can live off campus with relatives if it’s approved by the university, something Liza said was much easier to do than she expected. Since she and her brother were in a rush to find a place to live (having proof of somewhere to live is a must for applying to live off campus as a sophomore) they just decided to try Mill Street Village. Liza saw a sign from the highway advertising available apartments and it seemed like a good idea. Utilities were included in her $500 dollar a month lease, even basic cable and internet, which is a plus for apartment living. One of the drawbacks of living at Mill Street Village was that the apartment had no washer or dryer and the laundry facilities on site were expensive.
I have a slight conflict of interest when it comes to where Liza lived her junior year. She was my roommate at the University Commons. I was invited to live with a couple of other girls at the Commons, but that fell through (which happens a lot with searching for housing in groups) and I needed two other roommates. Liza agreed and we found a fourth roommate, problem solved. However, we signed the lease the first week of October our sophomore year, because we were told that we wouldn’t be able to later on in the year. We were also asked to sign the lease for our senior year at the end of September, after living together only a month, which seems like a bad idea looking back on it. At the Commons all bills are included except for cable/internet and electric, and there is a washer and dryer, which are assets to apartment living.
For her third apartment Liza lives in a house on Shafer; a two bedroom place in a house that is split into four apartments. She had a puppy (something most apartment complexes won’t allow) fall quarter, but took him home when he got too big. She has to pay more bills than she ever has before, but doesn’t think it is too bad. Her room is bigger, but it has no closet. There is an awesome deck, but the bathroom is small. She really likes her roommate, though. She also had to find someone to sublease her room at the Commons. She found someone on Craig’s List. Essentially she put up an ad and sent e-mails to everyone who posted that they were looking for somewhere to live, it worked.
“It’s so weird having lived three different places because I don’t remember all this stuff and it’s like I never even lived there.”
Sometimes it is a trade-off when trying to find a great place to live. You have to decide what you want and try to find somewhere that is a blend (or a compromise, we can’t always get what we want) of all of your requirements. Remember, you can find a place, even if it’s last minute.
*I actually searched "rolling stone puns" and came up with this article, I didn't just make something up. Yes, I Googled "rolling stone puns."
Liza's Words of Wisdom:
- Don't settle for the first place you look at right away, keep looking.
- Do a little research about your landlord; know what you are getting yourself into.
- Apartments are better deals than houses. They are easier to take care of and often cheaper.
- Check Craig’s List!
- Don’t let distance deter you. Places are generally cheaper the farther you go from campus. (The Commons even has it's own bus, pictured above in all its paw-printed glory)
- Don’t get tricked into signing a lease too early.
No comments:
Post a Comment