TechWife Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 This is something that we should have looked at before ds settled on his university, but better late than never, right? The university only guarantees on campus housing for freshman and freshmen are required to live on campus. Looking at their numbers, they can house "about 5,500 students." This past fall they had just over 18,000 students enrolled and just over 3,000 of them were freshmen. Once I add in RA's for 20 dorms and the students and RA's for the residential living communities, I"m not seeing a lot of housing for upperclassmen. The population of the town is about 17,000, so the university doubles the population. I just looked at apartment rentals in the area and found that there are many who cater to students in that they offer a "per person" rental rate vs. a per apartment rate. The leases are 12 month leases, which makes no sense to me if they are catering to students, though. The summer population on campus is much, much lower than during the fall/spring (only 1 of the 20 dorms is opened, for comparison). What floored me is the pricing! In the $650- $700 per month range for a bedroom and bathroom. Some of them have one bathroom per bedroom, some have one bathroom per two bedrooms. All of the apartment listings I saw are on the university bus line, so access isn't a problem. My eyes have definitely been opened to the lucrative business of housing students by the private sector. I also wonder what this does to the rental prices for residents of the area who are not students but prefer or need to live in an apartment community - are they "priced out" of the market? Just some jaw dropping moments here this morning! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmilyGF Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 We lived in a community that was like that. It was awful. The going rate per "room" was $900. Normal houses were converted into "student houses" and were rented out per room - and rooms like the dining room and family room were rented out. I think only the kitchen was considered common space. We lived in a two bedroom with four kids. Your child may want to look for a condo complex with rules if he isn't a partier. A lot of people in "normal neighborhoods" around us complained of loud neighbors, but our condo complex had a clause (legal or not) that your lease would be broken if you disturbed the peace. The place was very serene. Emily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 I just looked at apartment rentals in the area and found that there are many who cater to students in that they offer a "per person" rental rate vs. a per apartment rate. The leases are 12 month leases, which makes no sense to me if they are catering to students, though. The summer population on campus is much, much lower than during the fall/spring (only 1 of the 20 dorms is opened, for comparison). The 12-month term is pretty typical. The landlords have year-round expenses. What happens is that a lot of the apartments aren't occupied during the summer unless they can find someone to sublease that just needs summer housing. When I was in college it was actually MUCH cheaper to sublease over the summer than it was to live in the dorms for a summer session. People really discounted it in order to get at least some of their costs offset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura in CA Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 I guess it's pretty lucrative to have a place near campus, and rent to students! The 12-month lease seems pretty standard. I have boys in two (very different) college towns, one in which the average home sale price is $82/ft^2, and one where it is $620/ft^2 (!). One boy will be paying $750/mo. for (his half of) a cramped double room (bunk bed is the only option for fitting 2 kids in that tiny room), with one bathroom for 4 kids (2 double rooms). ETA: This is still a big, big savings over the dorm prices. The other son will be living in relative luxury, paying $250 for a large single room, in a two-story townhouse with a small yard, and two bathrooms for 3 kids. Heck, that's more space than I had until I was in my 30s! :) I guess they are at two extremes of the housing market for college students. Yes, I had my own jaw-dropping moments last week, as both boys are arranging their first apartments ... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momofkhm Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 We have friends coming over for dinner tonight who have a daughter at the same college as your son. She lived her first 2 years with her grandparents. (So there must be some way to get out of the living on campus deal.) But her dad already signed her lease for next fall. You want me to ask where? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*LC Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 I lived in the nicest apartment I've ever lived in as a college student when I subleased the summer after my sophomore year. For some reason, I don't ever remember needing to do this when I rented in a college town. I know I wasn't there those summer. Hopefully, he can be one of the lucky ones that get to stay in the dorm after freshman year. (Ask about that at orientation.) Or, hopefully, you can find a cheaper place than those you have seen. I know there a wide variation in apartment prices at my kids' school. She will be living in the 2nd cheapest that she found. There were probably some cheaper one-bedroom or efficiency apartments, but she wanted a roommate or 2 or 3. She had to sign a 12-month lease for the place she is renting for next school year. The good thing is she plans to live in this apt for two years, so she can leave her stuff there next summer if she doesn't find a subleaser. She hopes to leave some stuff in the apt this summer if no one has subleased. She had planned on leaving it all summer, since one of her soon-to-be rommates already lives there, However, she negotiated with the landlord that the carpet would be cleaned between occupants. I thought that was a good thing, but it probably won't be done before she moves out of the dorm. So,we have to move her stuff. including a bed that she is buying from a friend, home for another summer. The apt she is renting is unfurnished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted April 16, 2015 Author Share Posted April 16, 2015 We have friends coming over for dinner tonight who have a daughter at the same college as your son. She lived her first 2 years with her grandparents. (So there must be some way to get out of the living on campus deal.) But her dad already signed her lease for next fall. You want me to ask where? Yes, please do ask. If the student lives with a parent or guardian within 30 minutes of the campus, they are exempt from the on-campus requirement, so it's likely she was able to use that exemption. I would love to know where she is renting and generally how they saw the housing market there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 TechWife you may want to post on the thread with suggested things to consider about colleges. This one about off campus housing is a good one that is easily overlooked as colleges don't want to advertise any shortage of on-campus housing. I hope it all works out well for his sophomore year. At least you have time to plan as I'm sure others won't hear about this until they've already been on campus. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momofkhm Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 I would love to know where she is renting and generally how they saw the housing market there. Ok, I don't remember the name of it now, but it is run by the school. So school rules, which I guess includes no drinking. You rent the room, so if your roommate doesn't pay, you aren't liable for it. And he said it was $485 a month. Parking there is free. Buses run to and from campus. But he will still pay for dd to have a parking pass on campus. She is at a point in her classes where most will be in one building and he is paying for her to park right next to it. I was cooking dinner while we were talking so I prob forgot a lot. He did say that the prices you saw were pretty much norm for the area. OH! and where she is renting is brand new. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted April 17, 2015 Author Share Posted April 17, 2015 Ok, I don't remember the name of it now, but it is run by the school. So school rules, which I guess includes no drinking. You rent the room, so if your roommate doesn't pay, you aren't liable for it. And he said it was $485 a month. Parking there is free. Buses run to and from campus. But he will still pay for dd to have a parking pass on campus. She is at a point in her classes where most will be in one building and he is paying for her to park right next to it. I was cooking dinner while we were talking so I prob forgot a lot. He did say that the prices you saw were pretty much norm for the area. OH! and where she is renting is brand new. I think she got into the one and only university owned off campus complex. The rent there is significantly less than at other locations - very reasonable! You've given me hope! Alcohol is allowed in dorm rooms if the student is 21 or older as do our other state universities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Our local town has that problem, but in truth there are two distinct zones in town: the university zone in the old town, and the permanent residential zone which is suburbs plus government housing. Local people have definitely been priced out of the old town. The local government does limit the number of houses that can be split up into 'HMOs' (Homes in Multiple Occupancy) - this does control things a bit, but doesn't help young working people who also might want to share a flat. As far as the 12 month contracts: the landlord would have to put the monthly rate up even further if s/he was only renting for nine months (unless there is a a tourist trade to tap into); by renting over twelve months, s/he keeps the headline price lower and ensures year-long occupancy. From the landlord's point of view, there's no value to short contracts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyontheFarm Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 My BIL actually bought a house by the college. A little fixer upper that needed a lot of work. Their dd lived there and when the parents went to visit bi-weekly, Daddy did the repairs. Four years later, child is done program and house is done. They sold it and made some money on the deal. My BIL does build houses for a living so he knew what he was doing. The college my dd is heading to in Sept has the same deal. 1st years get the dorms, after that good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tokyomarie Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 The 12-month term is pretty typical. The landlords have year-round expenses. What happens is that a lot of the apartments aren't occupied during the summer unless they can find someone to sublease that just needs summer housing. When I was in college it was actually MUCH cheaper to sublease over the summer than it was to live in the dorms for a summer session. People really discounted it in order to get at least some of their costs offset. My son is staying on campus for summer term. He is subleasing an apartment from a friend at a quite reasonable rate. He'll be back in the dorm for his second year because a condition of his scholarship is that he live in the dorm for 2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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