As a college student, you are now considered an adult. Or at least, you should be. Most days you probably feel like you’re actually five years old. Despite feeling like you should probably still be using a sippy cup, you’re most likely coming to a point where you have to deal with more and more adult things: paying bills and having responsibilities that take priority over fun. Now, you may be facing another horrifying adult task. Househunting.
You’re finally ready to move out of the dorms and into an apartment or house of your own. You may not know where to start, or you may not even know what the right questions to ask a potential landlord are. Here are the 5 things you need to consider when looking for a place to live
Cost
You need to know your price point, but that’s not all that needs to be considered. You should make sure to ask if your rent will include your utilities. Some apartments/houses will include only some of the utilities. Most of the time your electric and cable are bills you would have to worry about in addition to your rent. If a place that you’re looking at does not include your electric in the cost of your rent you will want to ask if the heating is electric or gas. If the heat is electric, you will want to consider that your electric bill during the winter months will be much more expensive.
If you’re looking at an apartment alone, just remember that you will ultimately be responsible for all of the bills and this can make a very big difference depending upon the initial cost of the rent. If you plan to live with a roommate or two, you’ll be able to split the cost with roommates which is helpful. Some places will let you pay per month, per semester, and some landlords will also accept payment for the semester after a refund comes back from your university.
Amenities
You will want to make sure that a house or apartment that you’re looking at has everything you need. You will want to ask if there is air conditioning or if there is a washer and dryer available to you. You will want to make sure it has all of the necessary appliances, and if it’s something that’s important to you, the extra utilities like a dishwasher.
Especially if a place that you’re looking at does not have a washer or dryer unit you will have to consider the fact that you will then need to seek out a laundromat to do your laundry and that will ultimately be an additional cost to you.
Space
Make sure to think about the amount of space that you have available to you. Be mindful of all of the things that you own and need to have in an apartment/house. Especially if it’s not furnished, you must think about the furniture you’ll need to buy and how much space that will take up. In your kitchen, you need to be aware of how much cabinent space you have. If you’re living with roommates that space will need to be shared so that may alter some of your decisions.
Parking
Are you given a space for parking if you have a car? Do you have to pay for that parking spot? These are things that must be considered. Some places will charge an additional amount of money outside of your rent to park your car while other places have a garage or designated spot for your car that is free for you to use.
Proximity to the University
If you don’t have a car, the distance you would have to walk to school is something you will want to think about when you’re looking for a place to live. Even if you are driving, you probably don’t want to be too terribly far from the university. But a matter of a few blocks make make all of the difference depending on your circumstances.
Security
As a female, I know that I prioritize my safety when I’m house hunting. I feel most comfortable knowing I would be living in a safe building/house with a proper deadbolt. I want to be safe and have a peace of mind when I am laying in bed at night that I won’t have to worry about someone easily breaking in. If you would be living on the first floor, or if it’s a house, make sure that all of the windows actually lock.
There are plenty of things to think about when looking for a place to live, but ultimately the most important thing is that it will work for you (or whoever you plan to live with.) If you’re happy, it’s affordable, and you can see yourself living there then you have successfully conquered house hunting as a young adult!