<p>So, I've decided that I'm probably going to get a studio off-campus apartment, because it's financially secure (no roommates to worry about refusing to pay rent, studying abroad, heading home for the summer, etc.), and I am sick of dorm life already. Hopefully it won't end up being too lonely for me, but we'll have to see.</p>
<p>For those of you in studio apartments or just apartments in general, what is different from dorm life? Do you have any tips for a completely new apartment inhabitant? Warnings? Subleasing hints? Thanks...the more information I can gather now, the less roadblocks I'll hopefully run into in the future.</p>
Shop around. I (stupidly) signed up for a three-year contract with Time Warner for cable/phone/internet, which, at the time, was the only cable provider in Manhattan. Now, Verizon is out and frankly, Time Warner sucks, and I can’t switch to Verizon. I’m stuck. I don’t mind the three-year contract part, it’s just having to be with Time Warner part that’s lame.
So, do your research. If you have options for electricity or gas providers or other utility, read reviews online, compare prices, know what you’re getting into.</p>
<p>2) Know what you’ll need access to.
Being near a subway station and being in Fresh Direct’s delivery zone were both musts for me because of where I live. Of course, someone with a car and not in a city - this wouldn’t matter to. So, know what you need for your situation and fmake sure you’ll have access to it.</p>
<p>3) No-fee renting. I don’t know if this is applicable outside of NYC (?) but here, there are a lot of companies that will charge a fee, usually $1000-$4000+ dollars to find an apartment for you. A lot of people don’t know that:
a- you don’t need these companies to find an apartment. Use free resources when possible
and b- that these companies even charge a fee
So if it’s applicable to your area, keep an eye out for it.</p>
<p>4) Actually read your lease and negotiate if possible. Leases are long, a lot of people just sign and don’t read it. Read it. Find out what’s covered, what isn’t, in what situations you can break your lease, etc.
Also, in many cases you can negotiate your rent down. Most places just want to find somebody to take up residence and would be willing to sacrifice on price a bit.</p>
<p>I would try to check to see if their are reviews of the landlord/company you are leasing from. My landlord this year absolutely sucks, and I can’t wait until my lease is up.</p>
<p>I like my apartment a lot, I feel apart of the town community, as well as the school community. I’m a little further away from my school than I would like, and it gets annoying. </p>
<p>I would see whats in included in the lease, such as heat and electricity. If neither is, check to see how much, on average, it runs. I would also, personally, try to get a place that is furnished, its so much easier that way.</p>
<p>Use sites such as apartmentratings.com to weed out bad apartments. If the reviews are bad, you don’t want to live there. </p>
<p>You will be responsible for your own expenses (food, utilities, cable, etc…). You have to make sure you pay your bills on time. You’re also responsible for cleaning the place and taking out the trash. Make sure to get an apartment that has heat included in the rent (this is especially important if you live in a cold winter state).</p>
<p>Make a list of all your expenses. Cable, internet, electricity (you can find out the average electric bill for an apartment by calling your local utility company), rent, etc. Check to see if the apartment manager pays water/sewer/gas or if you have to do it.</p>
<p>Don’t throw any loud, late, or wild parties. That kind of thing is accepted/expected in a dorms, but not in an apartment building. Be a considerate neighbor.</p>
<p>You will have to buy household items for your new apartment life and they will add up to more than you think. Get what you can from thrift stores or Craigslist (furniture especially, there is no reason to buy it new.)</p>
<p>When you first get into your new apartment, photograph irregularities in it. Chips in the floor or walls, stains on the ceiling or carpet, etc. Also get a walk-through checklist and get the manager to sign it after noting down any flaws. If you don’t do this, there is a good chance the manager will take “damages” out of your deposit when you leave, even if it was the previous tenants who caused the damage.</p>
<p>Assess the manager/staff carefully. If you feel uncomfortable about them, don’t rent there.</p>
<p>I have checked the reviews of the apartments I am considering, and all of them seem to be rather good. Naturally, I am taking into account the kind of people that plan on living in the area and have made sure everything is relatively safe and gang-free. However, I did forget to take supermarket locations into consideration, so thank you for that tip.</p>
<p>PlattsburghLoser, my apartment complex actually says their cable and internet provider is Time Warner. Does this mean I can only get that particular cable and internet service?</p>
<p>I am in fact having difficulty finding a minimum lease term less than 12 months, as I only really plan on remaining in the area during the academic school year. Is subleasing difficult, as in involving considerable paperwork, time, and effort? I may be out of options on that front, unfortunately.</p>
<p>I was hoping to find a furnished place, but they are all considerably more expensive than their unfurnished counterparts…by at least $100-200. Is this reasonable, or should I just stick to the unfurnished ones? And if I should stick to the unfurnished ones, how do I drag all of my furniture over there from my house 3.5 hours away? Buying new furniture seems like such a comparative hassle.</p>
<p>It’s a good idea to talk to other off campus inhabitants that you know at your school. They could probabaly give you hints as to good locations, landlords, etc. Try and find an apartment complex that houses a lot of students so you will have some social interaction despite living alone. Living off campus alone can be a bit isolating so it’s good to have a strong social network in case you need help with things. When looking for a place, make a list of things that are must haves like a parking spot, snow removal if in a cold climate, garbage removal, are pets allowed, things like that. Look at lots of places so you can compare. If your school has an off campus housing board take advantage of it or use Craigs List to look for places, word of mouth is good too. Good luck</p>
<p>No, it depends on who’s serviced the building/area. Several providers can service the same building. Just call a few providers, give them your address and they’ll let you know if you can use them as a provider - I think Verizon fios let’s you check on their website.</p>
<p>The thing with Time Warner (as a cable provider, their internet isn’t that bad) is that their plain awful. It might just be in the metro NY area that they’re bad. The reviews for them in other locations are a little more positive.</p>
<p>However…when I first used them, they sent me a cable box with a huge cockroach stuck inside where the channels/clocks is.
Cable constantly goes out, the box always freezes, both my boxes freeze every day for thirty minutes at 10:00 and 7:00pm. Can’t change the channel or even turn the box off unless you unplug it.
The list is endless, I’m trying to avoid turning this into an “I hate Time Warner” thread.</p>
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<p>Have you tried looking at apartments specifically marketed towards college students? Those usually have a lease that follows the academic school year. And furnished apartments, in general, tend to have a shorter lease - but cost more. </p>
<p>Maybe consider renting furniture, like at Rent-A-Center or buying some cheap pieces from craigslist or ebay.
TJMaxx (the “home” version of their store, I can’t remember what it’s called) usually has inexpensive furniture, and if it’s scratched – even just a little – you can usually talk the price down with the manager.</p>
<p>Thanks PlattsburghLoser, I’ll have to see if any other internet and cable service providers can be used in the area. Do you have any personal recommendations for good providers? I’m more focused on internet use as opposed to cable, so maybe it won’t be so terrible using Time Warner. It is quite expensive, though. </p>
<p>Most apartments in the area are marketed toward college students, but the leases are still around 12 months. There are exceptions–very expensive exceptions, however, so I am most likely not going down that particular route. Is it possible that anyone might explain subleasing to me just in case I need it someday?</p>
<p>Hmmm, hopefully buying furniture this early in my life won’t be a bad idea, especially if I’m planning to live in the same location for 12 months. Thanks for the cheap furniture tips.</p>
<p>I don’t know what’s wrong with getting some cheap furniture unless you are going to move back with your parents for a while after graduation. My best friend is about to graduate and just bought a house recently and they moved the cheap furniture from their apartment right into the new house. When things are more solid financially they can buy some nicer furniture but in the meantime they aren’t sitting on the floor.</p>
<p>Don’t yell obscenities at your roommate (or to yourself) after 10 pm or so. If your apartment is like my condo, the walls are probably paper-thin.</p>
<p>Ikea is an option. Relatively cheap, easy to put together if you like putting things together, and they will deliver the furniture to you. $100+ more a month on a 12 month lease is 1200 bucks. You could definitely get enough furniture for a studio for much less than that. </p>
<p>And if you don’t buy all new, you/your parents can rent a car for a day and drive up some of your furniture. That’s what my parents do.</p>
<p>If you can’t find any leases that are less than 12 months I’d plan on taking classes in the summer. I think subletting is risky but if it’s your only choice…I did absolutely nothing when I went home the summer after freshman year so I am just going to stay here until I graduate, basically.</p>
<p>How much does it cost to rent a moving car or van? My parents say it’s very expensive to move stuff from home to an apartment, as I live about three and a half hours away from the college. I also would prefer to have more compact furniture that can give me an illusion of space in the tiny apartment.</p>
<p>Wow, now that you multiplied that cost up, I realize that you’re probably right! How much am I looking at spending, then? I’ll probably need, at minimum:</p>
<p>mattresses
bed frame
bed headboard
nightstand
dresser
computer desk
desk chair</p>
<p>I was considering buying used, but I’d rather have my own new style, so searching through used items will be an incredible hassle. However, I will most likely do this for less important items (or maybe even the most expensive items), such as a bed frame and headboard.</p>
<p>How exactly is subletting risky? Also, when renewing a 12 month lease, I can only renew again for yet another 12 months? Or could I perhaps renew the lease for a shorter period of time? My problem revolves around the chance that I may choose to study abroad or spend some summers travelling, and that’s not really going to work if EVERY lease has to be 12 months long. :(</p>
<p>If money is an issue, why do you need a bed frame and headboard? No seriously, I’m asking. I’ve never had a headboard before in my life (neither has anyone in my family) and I had a mattress on the ground for a few years. It’s perfectly fine and a great way to save a few bucks.</p>
<p>Go to IKEA for the rest of your stuff if you can.</p>
<p>I’ve always had a headboard that doubled as my bookshelf, and I’m not really sure why I have to go without a bed frame, as it can be obtained insanely cheaply if you know where to look. Plus I can just bring my bed frames from home, now that I think about it.</p>
<p>Why is everyone recommending IKEA? Their furniture actually does not seem to be that cheap…is this really the cheapest place to find new furniture? And, is there anywhere I can buy kitchen appliances and cooking utensils cheaply?</p>
<p>In terms of getting the furniture into my apartment, how is that going to work? I can only move in about 3-4 days prior to the start of class, which means I have only that long to get all of my furniture into the apartment! Does anyone have any experience with this?</p>