The average yearly rent for university apartments is $3000 a YEAR? Really?
@mom2collegekids @MLM Please relax. All of this caps lock and tearing up everything I say about the apartment, of course I would call the apartment before backing out of a dorm or signing or paying for anything. Until yesterday, I had only looked at 1 apartment complex and it was not the one I shared. There are over a dozen other options. There is a lot I don’t know about the apartment because the entire focus since March was on a dorm.
@mel159 We just don’t want you to get too far into a situation thinking things are one way (cheaper), only to find out that they aren’t cheaper and have some hurdles that you will have trouble with.
Frankly, I don’t have an issue with you finding a cheap/safe apt, but I think you need to find one for all 12 months so that you don’t have to move in/move out…store furniture and other items, etc…which is also costly and a pain in the tush.
It sounds like it’s not a good idea for you to go home to summers with grandma anyway.
Being in one place for the years that you’re in college can be a good thing. You can find a job that you can work lots in the summer and part-time during the school year.
Oh my gosh! There are some well meaning, very experienced people giving you advice.
@mom2collegekids Thank you. The apartment complex also offers 12 month leases and the price is 429/a month vs $529/month for the 10 month lease. There is another complex that seems promising too: http://uvtu.com/floorplans
But the more I think about it, I can’t leave the dorm because that option seems secure and the apartment doesn’t. My grandmother has agreed I can go to one sophomore year and beyond. By then, I can make friends who will want to rent with me. My current roommate (if we are still as close, hopefully) wants to rent with me sophomore year and she almost dis this year but her mom felt the same way about the dorms as my grandmom.
But this thread did help me because it discussed how I could get more federal loans through applying for Parent Plus and I can put the money I make this summer towards the dorm so I won’t have to borrow so much. So thank you everyone.
Once I leave for college, I’m free but while I’m stuck at home for the summer, there’s no way for my grandmom not to find out about me leaving the dorm and it will just be a miserable summer then. And I don’t want to risk damaging the relationship with my friend by ditching her as my roommate.
What I was talking about was a true offcampus share. I’m not sure if that is an option for you. Maybe there is a roommate wanted board at Temple?h. Like this?
I think the dorm is a better option for freshmen even if it costs more. Everything is included, including friends to walk to classes, home late at night, all the laundry facilities, food, etc. There is also the possibility you could work your way into an RA position for sophomore year, saving you lots of money. I usually advise that loans should be avoided, but in your case you don’t really have another option. Go an talk to a FA officer about your options, for the Plus loan (or denial) and a private loan. Some states have loans available. If you have money in a college account, I think this would be a good use for it. You won’t be borrowing for 4 years because next year it could be cheaper and you’ll know the area better so can get the best deal.
If I understand correctly, Temple’s in-state cost of attendance is about $31,000 according to http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg03_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=137 , so an $18,000 scholarship leaves $13,000.
You can probably stretch to cover $10,000 of it with a $5,500 federal direct loan and $4,500 in earnings from on-campus and summer jobs. So you would need $3,000 from cosigned loans or living frugally. Since the stated cost of attendance includes over $5,000 in books and other expenses, it may be possible to substantially reduce that cost through frugal living, minimizing or possibly even eliminating the need for cosigned loans.
It is still a bad thing for your grandmother to force you to choose a more expensive option when she is not paying for it (although living in the dorm does have advantages for frosh). Unfortunately, you seem to be stuck with that.
The RA suggestion is a good one for subsequent years. Generally those positions are highly competitive - who wouldn’t want to get free room and board in a dorm in exchange for watching out over underclassmen?
^^um, my daughter! We had talked about her becoming an RA before she even started college and she thought that seemed great. Then she got there and decided sorority life was for her.
Honestly, if we couldn’t afford it any other way, she’d be an RA, but I think it is a great way for someone who needs money for housing to get it. At daughter’s school they get a single room and unlimited food plan, some pay ($500 or so per semester) but I think they have to lead one of the Freshman Interest Groups, which is probably 5-10 meetings in a year.
It can be a pretty challenging job though. I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone; you have to have the temperament for it, including the sometimes burdensome task of being the “first responder” in the case of an incident in a dormitory. You also have to be an authority figure in some regards which can be challenging since if you’re a sophomore you are probably only one year older (at the most) than the people you’re supervising. I definitely recommend giving it some serious thought for the financial benefits but don’t forget that there’s a reason why they have to compensate RAs.
At my daughter’s school there was no free room or board attached to being a RA (just a small stipend) and it was still one of the most competitive positions on campus