What's the going rate for a small apartment where you live?

[BatmansWife]

I'm just curious. I know it must vary everywhere.

 

My oldest dd wants her own apartment. And, I don't blame her....she's almost 20 (I honestly think we'd all get along better if she had her own space/place). This year she's began collecting things for her own apartment (kitchen items, etc). Last month I went with her to look at a one bedroom apartment that was the first floor of a large house (landlord with his family lives upstairs, another renter next to apartment dd and I looked at). This one had a large bedroom, large living room (with cute window seat), large kitchen (tons of cabinets from floor to ceiling), small bathroom. It was $400 a month with a one year lease (yikes...we didn't want to commit to one year).

 

This morning we looked at another one that just became available. The landlord happens to be someone we know (my dh has done work for them often). It's above their workshop behind their house. When you walk in there's this adorable kitchen with island. The island has a sink, 2 burners and a grill. Above the island has this neat shake shingle type overhang with recessed lights (really cute). There are 3 really cool retro (they are old) barstools with backs, thickly padded. The living room is actually a combination living room/bedroom with a murphy bed. The bathroom is quite large and there are tons of closet space and cabinets. Downstairs (near the workshop) is a washer and dryer. Water, sewer, and garbage is included. But, it's not much cheaper than the first place...$395 (they are asking first month and $100 security deposit)...no lease though, with is a huge plus. She would need to pay for electricity (electric heat) and if she wants internet. The living room/bedroom also has large sliding glass doors with a balcony that overlooks the lake in town. It's just so stinkin' cute I can't stand it. Dd is quite responsible and is calculating all the costs (rent, electricity, her phone, possible internet, gas, food). She thinks she can swing this. I'm worried (not about safety at this apartment, but about this much money to come up with each month). She is working a lot at a restaurant and making really good tips. During the school year she goes to a tech school 3 days a week and still works.

 

I saw another sign for rent...another one bedroom which is part of a large house made into smaller apartments. That one is $400 including utilities. Buuuutt...I don't think it's as safe as this loft apartment. It's almost slightly trashy to me (although I haven't seen it inside)....I definitely question who the other renters in the house are.

 

I'm thinking this must be the going rate for small apartments around here. It still seems like a lot to me though. What do you think a place like this loft apartment would cost per month where you live? Just trying to figure if this is a good deal or not.

[Wheres Toto]

A one room studio apartment over a business around here runs about $600 a month, heat and hot water may be included.

 

I rented a 450 square foot, one bedroom house with a tiny galley kitchen and a bathroom with a shower stall only for $750/month, no utilities included.

 

A one bedroom garden apartment runs about $800/month with heat and hot water included.

[Jennifer in MI]

Location, location, location!!! I rented an apartment in Boston from 1993 - 1995 for $695/month, all inclusive.

 

I was just looking today for a friend and, in our suburban, nice town, they were going for at least $600, nothing included.

 

Sounds like the cute apartment might be a good deal if others are going for the same price!

[AmyontheFarm]

I was helping a friend look last month. Anything smoke free/pet free/ 20 minutes from the city is $600 + utilities and since I'm in Canada electric heat is really expensive in the winter. Now, if you wanted to live in the heart of the prositutionville, uhm I mean the heart of the city, there you could get good clean rooms for $400 a month + utilities, but I wouldn't want my son OR daughter living there.

[Farrar]

A lot more than that.

 

Young people around here live in group houses with other young 20-somethings more often in order to save a bit of money. A 3 or 4 bedroom house or apartment divided up 3 or 4 ways tends to be less.

[justamouse]

About 900, nothing included.

[redsquirrel]

Well, I just checked our local listings. For 450$ you can get a one bedroom with a private bathroom but a shared kitchen. If you want your own one bedroom apt in town it will run about $1000 per month. If you have a car and are willing to live in the country it will be about $800 per month.

 

For all of these, you will need to pay first, last and one month security up front.

[Embassy]

About $1000 with major utilities.

[LibraryLover]

.

Edited May 20, 2012 by LibraryLover

[peachskittles]

We live in the middle of nowhere so my post might not count. The place next to where we will be moving into is a one bedroom apartment (part of a quad plex). It isn't fancy, just a basic roof over your head place. Laundry is in the basement, all utilities are included, minus phone/internet, and I'd say it's probably 500sq ft total. The rate for that one is $350 a month. One bedrooms in our small city (roughly 8k people) go for about $300 - $400 without utilities included but you have to find one available first. :tongue_smilie:

[WistfulRidge]

Well, before I got married I lived about three blocks from where DH and I live now... once utilities were added into my rent I was paying about $290/month for a shared bedroom (roommate was my best friend) in a 3 bedroom apartment. If I'd wanted my own bedroom it would have been about $350. If I'd wanted my own (studio or - if I got lucky - 1 bedroom) apartment it would have easily been $500.

[gardening momma]

$300-400 was the going rate for a basic apartment, utilities included, in Grand Rapids, MI when I lived there in the early-mid 90's. I rented a small house in the U.P. of MI a few years later for about $350/mo., utilities included.

 

What you describe sounds like a good deal nowadays.

[Wabi Sabi]

In live in a college town with a very large state university. Because of this rentals are very expensive and typically geared towards students. A older and probably rundown one bedroom might be around $500/month plus utilities. I just looked on Craigslist and the nicer, newer 1 bedroom apartments are more in the $800-$1000+ range. I've never heard of anything other than a one full year lease unless you're talking short-term executive rentals in which case you're also going to be paying significantly more.

 

Living alone is rarely very affordable, IMO. It's almost always cheaper to split rent on a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment and have each person pay a share of the utilities.

[gardening momma]

Oh, and she should plan for her rent to be no more than 1/3 of her income. If it costs more than that, she can't afford it. (assuming she'll be paying for a car, car insurance, food & gas, clothing, etc.)

[mom24cuties]

I think $400 is a great price. I just moved from Chicago and the average rate for a 1 bedroom was $800 and up. I now live in Virginia where it is much cheaper. A 1 bedroom will run about $500 where I live.

 

ETA: Would she consider a roommate to share the cost?

[sassenach]

Average is about $1300 for a 1 bed, including nothing. We live in a very pricey area.

[prairiewindmomma]

a ratty old (ie carpet & appliances from the 70s) studio apartment here goes for about $550, no utilities included

 

the average 2 BR apartment goes for $800-1000

[Butter]

Just looked it up... 1 bedroom is $1000-1400. Yikes.

[Bluegoat]

In the cheaper areas here you are looking about $400 or so a month for a studio, a little more for one bedroom. Those tend to be rather tired buildings.

[raceNzanesmom]

Average 1 BR runs around $500-600 plus electric. In older parts of town you might find one for $400, newer parts and closer to the colleges as much as $800. Deposit is almost always one month's rent- or more.

 

However, 2 BRs often only run $50-100 more, so singles often share a 2 BR apt to save.

[mommymilkies]

It was $425 or something without utilities at our last rental-that was a small house with about no yard and 800 sq. ft. but pets allowed. We had great landlords. Before that it was an 800 sq. ft apartment for $700 in a different, and very expensive, town. That was...not a good place to live, to put it kindly. Luckily the COL for housing is pretty low here.

[Mama_Rana]

My first apartment out of college in the county I live in now was a major eye-opener. I honestly shouldn't have rented it. And the next year, I ended up renting something else.

I haven't looked at rents for years, but I just did a search. In the city to the east of me, there are some for as little as $500 [not sure what if anything is included], but the cheapest in my county was $922. That was not over a business though. I'm not sure what those go for; my dh and I used to rent one like that, but I don't remember what we paid, and it was 10+ years ago.

I think $400 is a steal, personally, but I live in a high COL area. :(

[Shellers]

My 21 year old daughter can't afford a one bedroom apartment. She lives a hour away from us and the current rate for a one bedroom there is about $900 a month.

 

She got together with two other girls she went to high school with and they rent a 3 bedroom apartment for $1,450 a month. It's a GREAT deal, three bedrooms normally go for much more. One girl pays $550 a month (she gets the master) and the other two pay $450 a month each. Garbage is included in the price, the girls pay everything else.

[tammyw]

A quick look at Craigslist, and one bedrooms look about $1350 in our neighborhood. We're in San Diego, and it's crazy expensive here.

[TrixieB]

About $800/month here.

 

I paid $450/month for a small 1 BR apartment back in the early 90's. I wonder what it's renting for these days... hmm, okay, I looked up the building and the basement studio apartment in the same building just rented for $750 with a one year lease.

[J-rap]

My son and his wife live in a charming old apartment above a coffeeshop for $350/month, including everything except gas. It is a sprawling 2-bedroom apt with a living room bigger than mine. This is in a small town.

 

They're considering a move back to NYC though where the cheapest studio apt. they could find in a decent area is about $1200. Needless to say, they aren't in a big hurry to move.

[Laura Corin]

About £500 per calendar month in town for a one-bedroom flat. It's a university town with a lot of demand for flats.

 

Laura

[HSMWB]

We have two that we rent in two different towns.

 

One is a studio in the basement - it goes for $550, including all utilities.

 

One is a one bedroom for $700 garbage only included.

[catz]

A very small apartment in my area would go for $500-600, nothing included and up from there. And short term rentals are more expensive - almost everything requires a 1 year lease. I had the same experienence when I went to college. When I moved into apartments, I could not move home for the summer (though I did visit plenty).

[KidsHappen]

My 19 year old has looked from Nashville south to Franklin & Cool Springs and east to Murfreesboro. The cheapest that they have seen is $650 without utilities which she and her fiance' can not afford. So they still reside here at home. The prices are about the same in Atlanta so my 20 year old lives with her sister.

[Amber in SJ]

I look it up online today. A tiny, shabby studio in the scary parts of town run $850 and the nicer parts of town run around $1200. The really fancy 1 bedrooms with all the bells & whistles can get to $2800.

 

When I was in college (late 90's) four of us shared a two bedroom in one of the scary parts of town for $750. It was near the University, but on the "bad" side.

 

Amber in SJ

[Mergath]

The cute loft apartment described would probably go for $600-700 here, including the utilities. You can get a really dumpy one bedroom for $500. We live in a cute-but-tiny two bedroom duplex with really, really old appliances, no washer/dryer, and a miniscule 3/4 bathroom, and it's $650 for everything. It would be more, but we moved in over four years ago, and prices have gone up since then. We live in a smallish town of about ten thousand people.

[jennsmile]

Have you looked at building a tiny house for her? She could park it next to your house but be self contained. I am seriously considering that for my boys as they grow up. They can build the house in high school and have a place to call their own while they go to school.

[Night Elf]

I have no idea about renting a room in a homeowner's home. We are looking at apartment complexes. My dd20 has been wanting to move out for a year but the cheapest 1 BR we can find is $795. She can get a 2 BR for $800 but doesn't have a roommate who can afford it with her. She knows some guys who have a 3 BR house that they rent, $500 per bedroom. She is thinking of moving into one of the BR with a friend from work so they can each pay $250. I'm highly discouraging that. I know it sounds cool because she'll be out on her own but sharing an actual bedroom where they'll just barely have room for 2 twin beds and one dresser seems like a very bad mistake to me.

 

My dd could probably swing $400, but she'll feel totally stuck in a job she hates. I'm hoping she listens to reason and stays here until she can find a roommate who can share a 2 BR with her. But the $800 apartment did not incude any utilities so the total monthly payment will be higher as well.

[stansclan89]

1 bedroom or studio apts here run about $500 a month not including utilities or washer/dryer and not furnished. The nice one you described sounded like it was furnished? It would be $700-800 here.

[Desert Rat]

Just ran a few listings here (Las Vegas). Studios run $475 to start, only water included, but those aren't in great areas. The ones that are, studios/small one bedrooms start at *eek* $750, no utilities.

[tabrizia]

Just checked in my town. A studio or 1 bedroom in our area, with nothing but water and sewage covered, is around $1000 for the low end, the high end can be almost 3 times as much.

[goldberry]

Small town in Colorado, 1 bed efficiencies go for $500-$600 plus utilities. Three bedroom houses rent for $1200 or so.

 

We used to live in Dallas/Fort Worth. Our first apartment cost $395...in 1986!

Edited May 19, 2012 by coloradoperkins

[GAPeachie]

In 2003, DH and I rented an apartment with one bedroom and bath. You had to go through the bedroom to get to the only bathroom. Tiny galley kitchen, non existant diningroom. Water included and that was a rent special in Georgia for $399.

 

Here in VA we couldn't even touch that.

[BatmansWife]

Thanks for all the replies. It gives me a little perspective. Not sure what we are going to do yet. Dd has been gone since yesterday babysitting so we haven't gotten to talk too much yet. She did call the landlord yesterday to tell him she is very interested but needs a little time to figure it all out and talk to us about it. He said if he shows it this weekend to anyone else and they are interested, then he'll give her until Monday morning to give him an answer. If nobody shows interest this weekend then she can have longer to decide.

 

I went into the electric company today to get an estimate of the usage at that apartment. They said it looks like it would be around $100 or a bit less during the summer (unless the air conditioner is on a lot). In the winter electric could be $200 - $300. This might end up being the deal breaker. I don't know how she could afford that when she's in school and getting less work hours. We barely make it through the winter ourselves so we won't be able to help out much.

 

She really doesn't have any friends that she could share this with. Some of her friends at work are still in high school. Others are off to college during the school year. Somebody mentioned that it sounds like it's furnsihed. It has the refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer, the murphy bed, and the 3 bar stools. She said she doesn't know if she'd even want to use the bed. She might just have it up and get a futon (but that doesn't seem very comfortable to me).

 

So, there's still a lot to consider. I was nearly having a meltdown last night. :crying: She was gone babysitting and I was thinking this is what it would be like every single night...her not being here.....me wondering if she's ok. It just never feels "right" when someone in the family is not home when they should be....kwim? I worry she'll be lonely, bored, scared. What about at night when it's dark or it's storming? She often doesn't like coming in from the car to our house when it's dark...what about when she's by herself? It sure is hard to have your kid be at a stage where they want to be out on their own.

Edited May 19, 2012 by ~AprilMay~

[SweetPea]

Were I live now you pay $750 for 1 bdrm/1bath and does not include utilities. It does come with washer/dryer in the unit.

 

In 1994 in Austin, we paid $500 for a brand new 1 bdrm/1 bath and paid for all of our utilities.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

My mom just rented a small one bedroom apartment in a decent neighborhood for $532 a month.

[bnrmom]

Well, I live in one of the most expensive areas in the country - you can't rent a parking spot for $400 a month here. The crappy, but perfectly safe, apartment building a few streets over from us charges $1500 for a one bedroom.

 

Anything under $1000 is going to be tiny, dark, and probably next to a major road. However, it's a very mild climate, so utilities are not a make or break deal.

Edited May 19, 2012 by bnrmom

[FaithManor]

We live in a rural area so housing options are limited. Some of the towns do have apartment complexes and a few of the retired farmers have converted a small area of their two story houses into rentals.

 

A 1 bedroom basic at the nearest complex with electric, water, and garbage pick up included but heat is metered runs $350.00 Since these are fairly small (and especially if you have an upstairs apartment) the heat bill is probably only $85-100 a month with it closer to $150 on the ground floor.

 

An efficiency in one of the farmhouses (living area but no bedroom, bathroom with shower only, galley kitchen...generally in the 12x20 ft plus bathroom for size) is $175.00 - $200.00

 

Two bedrooms start at $400.00 and the VERY few three bedrooms available are around $550.00 I've never heard of an apartment going higher than that. Houses, small two bedroom cottage style with no utilities included but will have garbage pick-up, are about $350.00 (unfortunately, most of these are not heat efficient whatsoever so you can add $150.00 for electric and $200.00 or more a month for fuel oil/propane). Three bedroom houses - not many available to rent - go for around $500.00 and except for garbage, renter pays the utilities which is not cheap if the house does not have good insulation, decent roof, quality windows, etc.

 

Faith

[Alphabetika]

We live in Southern CA where property costs are high. Today I helped friends clean a 2br, 2ba apt. I would estimate it was about 800 sq. ft with small bedrooms and inside laundry, in an okay area but not fantastic. Their rent was $1900 a month.

[annandatje]

About 900, nothing included.

 

 

That is the going rate in my area for a small one bedroom with nothing included.

[gardening momma]

I have no idea about renting a room in a homeowner's home.

I've done that before, but it was through a roommate referral service I found in a mall. They also had an apartment finder service.

 

She knows some guys who have a 3 BR house that they rent, $500 per bedroom. She is thinking of moving into one of the BR with a friend from work so they can each pay $250. I'm highly discouraging that. I know it sounds cool because she'll be out on her own but sharing an actual bedroom where they'll just barely have room for 2 twin beds and one dresser seems like a very bad mistake to me.

I wouldn't have a problem with it if it's all girls. It would feel safer to me. As far as sharing a small room--2 twin beds--that's not unlike sharing a college dorm room, but you'd have the living room and kitchen, too. It would probably be a good deal when you're just starting out.

[calimom04]

here its about 750 a month for a one bedroom. No amenities.

[TCoppock]

Government rate controlled apartments are about 500-700 here. Regular apartments 1000-1500 easily. Nicer apartments seem to 1700-2000+++

[happypamama]

Location, location, location!!! I rented an apartment in Boston from 1993 - 1995 for $695/month, all inclusive.

 

I was just looking today for a friend and, in our suburban, nice town, they were going for at least $600, nothing included.

 

Sounds like the cute apartment might be a good deal if others are going for the same price!

 

Yes, indeed! When we were first married, we lived in Boston for two years (1998-2000), paying $700 for a small one-bedroom basement apartment (though not a studio; it had three rooms and a good-sized bathroom), plus electricity and phone, and with no AC, no parking, and laundry only in the building. And that was a steal. When we moved to southeastern PA after leaving Boston, we paid less per month for a mortgage on a 1200 sq. foot house with a nice unfinished basement, off-street parking, small yard, and two bathrooms. It's all about location -- that cute apartment sounds like it is comparable to other places.