What College Students Look For In An Apartment Complex

By Alexandra Brown on December 1, 2014

This article is brought to you by the Uloop Housing search service. Ready to make the move off campus? Search through the Uloop housing listings to find your next apartment, condo, town home, or house.

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Living in the dorms can be a lot of fun, but getting together a group of good friends you’ve made in search of an apartment for the next school year can be all kinds of exciting. Obviously, you want to go into the search with some knowledge of what you’re looking for in an apartment complex.

Here are 10 things you may want to consider in your apartment search.

1. Reasonable rent

The first thing you’re most likely going to want to take into consideration, above all else, is the amount of rent being asked for an apartment in the complex.

It may be a good idea to have a conversation with the group of friends you’ve chosen to live with about their money situations, before you even look into different apartment complexes. The last thing you want to happen is an awkward dispute regarding someone’s personal money situation that starts unwanted drama within the group.

Simply come to an agreement about the range in which you’re all willing to spend on rent every month to avoid conflict.

2. Proximity to campus

When looking into an apartment complex, its proximity to your college campus may be an important factor. If you’re taking classes within a specific major that meet in a specific part of campus, or set of buildings, your proximity to that location may be a priority.

If this is something that seems likely to be of importance to you, discuss it with your friends, and make an effort to search for apartment complexes near where you need to be for the majority of your classes.

Also, make sure this works out for the other people you’ll be living with.

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3. Proximity to other important places

Another thing to keep in mind is the apartment complex’s proximity to important places you or your potential roommates need to be at on a weekly basis. These places could include work, major bus stops, or any other place near which it would be ideal to live.

4. Proximity to annoyances

In addition to the apartment complex’s proximity to various parts of campus, as well as other places you and your roomies consider important, another thing to look out for is the complex’s proximity to everyday annoyances.

These could include notoriously busy and loud intersections, fire stations and even popular bars. The last thing most people want is to rent an apartment that basically shares walls with the most popular bar on campus, making it impossible to sleep or get any work done the majority of the time.

5. Leasing office’s reputation

Something that a lot of people don’t think to consider is the apartment complex or leasing office’s reputation on or off campus, among previous renters. Knowing about experiences previous renters have had can be very helpful when deciding between apartments.

You can find out usually by searching through sites like Google, Reddit, or Craigslist.

6. Parking options

If you or any of your potential roommates plan on having cars at school, you should definitely be looking into the availability of parking garages/spots/street parking when it comes to searching for an apartment.

Scouting out possible places near the complex to park, if it does not offer parking options, would also be advisable.

7. Additional perks (fitness room, pool, rooftop deck)

If money is not an issue, or your college campus just happens to be equipped with awesome, new apartment complexes that offer special perks, definitely look into them. These could include anything from a fitness room to a pool, to a bar in the lobby or a rooftop deck.

Some complexes may even include rooms with large screens for communal movie watching.

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8. Level of cleanliness

How “nice” your apartment will be is a major thing that needs to be discussed among your potential roommates. Everyone needs to be on the same page about what they consider a “nice,” “quality” apartment, which could include how clean it is, how recently the appliances have been updated, their quality, and how kept up the walls and floors appear.

Your ultimate choice should fall under what everyone in the group considers an acceptable living space.

9. Neighborhood

Taking into account the neighborhood where certain apartment complexes are located is definitely advantageous. You probably don’t want to live in a crime-ridden area, or in an area known for having a sketchy night scene. Make safety a high priority.

10. Extra features

Lastly, thinking ahead about extra features you or your potential roomies might think important or necessary is beneficial. These could include nice things to have as part of your apartment, such as an abundance of windows or a sizable balcony.

Taking the next step to choose an apartment complex to live in can seem stressful, but if you keep in mind the 10 things listed above, the process should go pretty smoothly.

Make your next move easy by finding a place to live near campus using the Uloop Housing search service full of students needing Roommates and Sublets or people ready to rent you a great Apartment or House.

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