<p>I'm going to be attending WM for graduate school in the fall, and am just curious if anyone has any input on housing complexes near campus. I'm looking for complexes which are quiet, and mainly full of graduate and professional students/young professionals. Ideally, I'd like to pay below 600 with a roommate or two...</p>
<p>Thank you so much for any suggestions!</p>
<p>hmm… there is not much in the way of “student oriented housing” in Williamsburg. The undergrads that live off campus generally live in houses nearby or the Midlands apartments (and there’s another popular apartment place that I can’t think of right now…)</p>
<p>There are new places behind the new movie theater, which is called movie tavern. This area is called “high street”… it should be far away enough from campus that I doubt there will be many undergrads there. It might be a little above your price range though, you can check it out.</p>
<p>are you opposed to living in the WM graduate housing? I don’t know how nice it is, but the location is good I think, and obviously it would be other grad students.</p>
<p>[The</a> College of William & Mary Off Campus Housing Service](<a href=“http://www.wmoffcampus.com/]The”>http://www.wmoffcampus.com/)</p>
<p>Hmm interesting. Sounds like most undergrads stick to campus then, so any apartment complexes I may find within a few minutes drive of campus would probably be a good bet? I haven’t visited campus yet since it’s a pretty long drive and I have a hectic work schedule, but was just curious if it’s anything like my alma mater where there are the “undergraduate complexes” that everyone sticks to, then other places which are heavily populated by graduate students. </p>
<p>I’ve thought about the graduate student housing, but I do have a cat, so that kind of throws a wrench into living there…</p>
<p>shmelke- Thanks so much for the link…I’m sure it will be immensely helpful once spring kicks in.</p>
<p>I would think you would have pretty good luck with apartment complexes close by… King and Queen apartments are right next to campus, but they are 1. low quality, and 2. not quiet.</p>
<p>The undergrads definitely stick to campus… ~2800 go through the housing lottery every year, which doesn’t include fraternities, sororities, or interest housing (language housing, etc). Plus the 1400 freshmen who are guaranteed housing, means most students are on campus. And most students who aren’t on campus will be within a few blocks. I don’t think you will find anywhere that is apartment after apartment of students like you will at other schools (UVA, JMU, VTech, and sounds like your school also)</p>
<p>You mentioned you were looking for 1/2 roommates. You should know that there is a law in Williamsburg that does not allow more than 3 unrelated people to live together. Some houses were grandfathered in allowing 4 people, and some landlords will rent to 4 people (with only 3 on the lease), but mostly the legal maximum is 3. That is something to be wary of if you start looking at a 4 person place.</p>
<p>But if you go somewhere outside the city proper (its rather small) like in James City County, they do not, to my knowledge, have such a rule. It would be a couple minutes more to drive, but it could be cheaper.</p>
<p>I believe James City County also has a 3-person rule, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it enforced. The City of Williamsburg seems to care a lot more. Most of the students who get caught make the mistake of letting their information get published in the student directory (which the City somehow gets its hands on); others have creepy stalkers for neighbors who have nothing better to do than count the number of cars parked on the street and jot down license plate numbers.</p>
<p>Apartment complexes popular with undergrads include the Midlands, Governors Square, and King and Queen. If you’re looking for something a bit quieter, I would try elsewhere. Here is a list of other apartment complexes in the Williamsburg area. Some complexes are better than others, so I would look for reviews if you can. As a personal recommendation I would avoid anything managed by Berkeley Realty. [Williamsburg</a> Apartments for Rent - Williamsburg, VA on ApartmentGuide.com](<a href=“http://www.apartmentguide.com/apartments/Virginia/Williamsburg/]Williamsburg”>http://www.apartmentguide.com/apartments/Virginia/Williamsburg/)</p>
<p>I know this is an old thread, but hoping people have some thoughts on this. I’m looking at getting a townhouse in the Midlands through Berkeley Realty. The last comment makes me nervous though – has anyone had bad encounters with Berkeley, or could you recommend a better realty company to check out? Thanks!</p>
<p>My daughter lived in the Midlands and enjoyed it but only because of the other students that worked around her. Berkeley is NOT GOOD to deal with. The townhouse was really dirty and in horrible shape when they moved in. Berkeley said they had cleaned it but there is no way they even went in. They were not good at responding to issues. When the lease ended the apartment was really clean and in good shape but Berekely would not return their security deposit. Don’t expect much from them.</p>
<p>I second Berkeley being terrible to deal with. Well, I guess I started it, and momto2 seconded it. My apartment in Governors Square was not inspected before I moved in. There was trash and furniture all over the apartment, beer splattered on the walls, and a door off its hinges. Described as an “oversight”. They cleaned it within a day or two, and had people come to take away the furniture (which consisted of them throwing the couches off the 3rd story balcony) but I had to stay in a hotel at my own expense. They were also very slow to respond to maintenance requests, and often opted to jerry-rig equipment that probably should have been replaced years ago (especially AC units). They also sent maintenance people to perform routine maintenance without notice, and let themselves in to perform surprise inspections. So I woke up to find a painter in my apartment one morning, and Berkeley themselves another day. That stopped when I threatened to call the cops on them or their contractors if they let themselves in to my apartment again without notice (after all, I should know who is supposed to be in my apartment, when, and why). I was lucky enough to get my entire security deposit back, which is apparently unusual… most people get hit for damage or cleaning. My advice is to move out a few days early, then be present for repeated inspections, and correct anything they note until you get them to sign off on the fact that there is nothing wrong. They withheld a few hundred dollars to cover any unpaid utility bills. It has been two years and many phone calls since I moved out and I still haven’t gotten it. They can see I’m still owed it every time I call, but I don’t have a check.</p>
<p>I don’t know if my experience was particularly bad, but I have yet to meet anyone who had pleasant dealings with Berkeley. That said, lots of W&M students live there because there isn’t too much choice. I would still avoid it if you can find a reasonable alternative. There are very nice apartments in New Town and High Street now, but they may be a bit out of the typical student’s price range. I would recommend Colonial Pines or Steeplechase, both of which are probably more reasonably priced. Steeplechase is probably more in the area you would want to be (over by Target, not too far past New Town).</p>