Copyright (c) 2015 Hayden Commons
If you have decided that you wish to live off-campus during your college years, it is likely that you are wondering whether to have a roommate or not. Off-campus accommodation comes with many perks, including ample parking and the ability to live independently without constant supervision. There are certain questions that you need to ask yourself when thinking of whether to share your room/lease or whether to live alone.
Can you afford it?
This is usually the first question that comes to mind when one is required to live off-campus, and the main reason why people all over the world decide to split rent. Many college students will decide to share their apartments because they need help coming up with the rent. So if you have a feeling that individual leasing is going to be an issue, you might want to get someone with whom you can share these costs. If lease payment is not an issue, then move along to the next question.
What kind of a roommate are you?
If you have a hard time sharing space with someone, you might want to live alone, at least until you can comfortably learn to share space. Sometimes, there are conflicts between roommates not because one is bad, but because two very different personalities met and clashed.
How big is the shared space?
Of course, you might be capable of sharing but it so happens that you are confined to a very tiny space; which makes existing as two separate individuals rather tricky. As such, you must consider how big the apartment you wish to lease is. This way, you can determine whether there will be adequate room for the both of you.
Have you met your potential roommate?
The semester drags on forever if you are living with someone you do not like. It is therefore important to ensure that the person you live with is someone you can, at the very least, get along with. If you can, find someone you are already familiar and friends with to share the apartment with you. This way, there will be fewer chances of nasty surprises along the way.
Are you clear on what your responsibilities will be?
Before you live with someone, it is important to establish what will be required of either party. Living together blindly is the recipe for fights later on. Lay the ground rules early enough even before you are done unpacking. This way, if someone neglects the duties assigned to them, they will be held accountable. And speaking of duties, one more question that you should ask is...
How will you operate-separately or as a unit?
You must decide whether you will carry out certain tasks such as shopping for groceries, cooking, doing the laundry etc. separately or together. This way, you will know whether your roommate expects to find a cooked meal on a certain day, or whether they will bring their own take out, and so on.
Living with a roommate in off-campus housing can be exciting, but only if you prepare yourself well for it.
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Hayden Commons offers student housing for the FSU campus. We take pride in managing our property to ensure our residents have the opportunity to enjoy the great social and academic experience Florida State University offers. http://haydencommons.net/
Monday, July 27, 2015
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Questions to Ask when Selecting Off-Campus Student Housing
Copyright (c) 2015 Athens Commons
Choosing off-campus student housing can be nerve-wracking, especially when so many options are involved and you do not know where to get started. The trick to selecting the best off-campus student housing is to have a clear picture of what you want, then work towards getting that. Here are some questions you should answer before you choose a particular student housing community.
How far from college do you want to live?
Usually, students want to live as close to campus as possible so they can get to class easily, without even requiring to drive there (that is, within walking distance). You must clearly determine how far is too far and then slowly eliminate the housing options that do not meet this criterion. Remember you do not want to spend lots of time commuting, and you also want an apartment that is centrally located to allow access to other areas as well, including libraries, bookshops, restaurants, theaters and so on.
What kind of lifestyle are you looking for?
Different student housing communities offer different types of lifestyles, based on the kind of accommodation and facilities offered. Some housing communities will offer townhouse living while others will offer single-family homes. It is up to you to determine what you are looking for, then seek a housing community that enables this.
Are you looking to live with someone or alone?
This is a question that is crucial as it determines the kind of lease that is best for you. If you wish to live alone and pay for the housing on your own, go for housing that offers individual leases. If you want to have a roommate, choose housing that has leases for shared spaces.
How important is security to you?
Usually, the best answer to this question is 'very'. However, for some reasons, you may feel that the security features put in place by a particular housing community are not very important to you, maybe because you know the neighborhood to be particularly safe and so on. Both ways, you must decide what you feel about security; and whether it matters to you that a housing community have state-of-the-art security systems or not.
Is there sufficient parking space?
You do not want a housing community that does not provide adequate parking space, as this will pose a big problem later on. Of course, if you prefer to use a bicycle, you should enquire whether bike racks are provided. The bottom line is to ensure your mode of transport is secured at all times.
Are there common areas provided?
Depending on how important socialization is to you, you should find out whether common areas have been provided by the housing community. Common areas include common indoor rooms, outdoor kitchens and even swimming pools. College demands excellence in not just academics but in the social sphere as well; and social interactions begin in these common areas.
Of course, these questions are just guidelines to helping you choose the best housing community. You should have a list of other things that matter to you, to enable you make the best choice for off-campus accommodation.
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Athens Commons offers student housing across the street from the University's Business School. We take pride in managing our property to ensure our residents have the opportunity to enjoy the great social and academic experience Athens University offers. http://athenscommons.com/
Choosing off-campus student housing can be nerve-wracking, especially when so many options are involved and you do not know where to get started. The trick to selecting the best off-campus student housing is to have a clear picture of what you want, then work towards getting that. Here are some questions you should answer before you choose a particular student housing community.
How far from college do you want to live?
Usually, students want to live as close to campus as possible so they can get to class easily, without even requiring to drive there (that is, within walking distance). You must clearly determine how far is too far and then slowly eliminate the housing options that do not meet this criterion. Remember you do not want to spend lots of time commuting, and you also want an apartment that is centrally located to allow access to other areas as well, including libraries, bookshops, restaurants, theaters and so on.
What kind of lifestyle are you looking for?
Different student housing communities offer different types of lifestyles, based on the kind of accommodation and facilities offered. Some housing communities will offer townhouse living while others will offer single-family homes. It is up to you to determine what you are looking for, then seek a housing community that enables this.
Are you looking to live with someone or alone?
This is a question that is crucial as it determines the kind of lease that is best for you. If you wish to live alone and pay for the housing on your own, go for housing that offers individual leases. If you want to have a roommate, choose housing that has leases for shared spaces.
How important is security to you?
Usually, the best answer to this question is 'very'. However, for some reasons, you may feel that the security features put in place by a particular housing community are not very important to you, maybe because you know the neighborhood to be particularly safe and so on. Both ways, you must decide what you feel about security; and whether it matters to you that a housing community have state-of-the-art security systems or not.
Is there sufficient parking space?
You do not want a housing community that does not provide adequate parking space, as this will pose a big problem later on. Of course, if you prefer to use a bicycle, you should enquire whether bike racks are provided. The bottom line is to ensure your mode of transport is secured at all times.
Are there common areas provided?
Depending on how important socialization is to you, you should find out whether common areas have been provided by the housing community. Common areas include common indoor rooms, outdoor kitchens and even swimming pools. College demands excellence in not just academics but in the social sphere as well; and social interactions begin in these common areas.
Of course, these questions are just guidelines to helping you choose the best housing community. You should have a list of other things that matter to you, to enable you make the best choice for off-campus accommodation.
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Athens Commons offers student housing across the street from the University's Business School. We take pride in managing our property to ensure our residents have the opportunity to enjoy the great social and academic experience Athens University offers. http://athenscommons.com/
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Tips for Choosing Student Housing
Copyright (c) 2015 Hayden Commons
If you are just about to head to college, you might be considering living off-campus for whatever reasons. Or it could be that you cannot find accommodation on-campus and have been left with no choice but to find student housing outside of campus. If you are in such a predicament, knowing what to look out for when choosing student housing is important. Here are the things that should matter:
Location and ease of access
You want student housing that is conveniently located to allow you get to classes easily and at the same time access social amenities such as restaurants with minimal hassle. The last thing you want is to spend the best years of your college experience doing hour-long commutes. Not only will you miss out on many hours of sleep, your social life will be compromised as well.
Security
It is paramount that the student housing you choose guarantees your security and that of your property at all times. Make sure you check to see whether there are security features that have been put in place to ensure that no unauthorized persons (read, security threats) get through the gates of the housing community. Surveillance cameras and key-controlled access are features that every student housing community worth its name should have.
Leases
The best student housing is the one that offers flexibility as far as leases are concerned. No one wants to be forced to co-sign on a lease unless that is what they had been planning. It is therefore necessary to go for those housing communities that offer individual leases.
Privacy
You have a right to your privacy, and it should continue even after you have enrolled for college/university. Be sure to check the layout of the student housing and the measures that have been put in place to ensure every student gets the privacy they need. If you have to share rooms against your wish, you might want to look elsewhere. And this also goes for the type of fencing that has been used for the housing community. Does it allow outsiders plenty of view inside? Are you okay with this? These are questions that you must answer honestly.
Parking spaces
There should be plenty of parking space for the students living in the housing community, to prevent conflicts and avoid wastage of time. Bike racks should also be provided for those who use this alternative means of transport. The idea here is to make the lives of the students living here as easy as possible, and you should make sure steps have been taken to ensure this.
Common areas
Common areas such as outdoor kitchens and swimming pools should be provided to enable socialization, especially during those warm months when staying indoors is almost impossible. Remember that college is not just about books, but building relationships and networks too. It is therefore necessary to go for a student housing community that recognizes this fact, and works towards enabling it.
At the end of the day, it is you, the student, who decides what type of housing is best for you. However, with these useful tips, the process of narrowing down to the best student housing will become much easier.
----------------------------------------------------
Hayden Commons offers student housing for the FSU campus. We take pride in managing our property to ensure our residents have the opportunity to enjoy the great social and academic experience Florida State University offers. http://haydencommons.net/
If you are just about to head to college, you might be considering living off-campus for whatever reasons. Or it could be that you cannot find accommodation on-campus and have been left with no choice but to find student housing outside of campus. If you are in such a predicament, knowing what to look out for when choosing student housing is important. Here are the things that should matter:
Location and ease of access
You want student housing that is conveniently located to allow you get to classes easily and at the same time access social amenities such as restaurants with minimal hassle. The last thing you want is to spend the best years of your college experience doing hour-long commutes. Not only will you miss out on many hours of sleep, your social life will be compromised as well.
Security
It is paramount that the student housing you choose guarantees your security and that of your property at all times. Make sure you check to see whether there are security features that have been put in place to ensure that no unauthorized persons (read, security threats) get through the gates of the housing community. Surveillance cameras and key-controlled access are features that every student housing community worth its name should have.
Leases
The best student housing is the one that offers flexibility as far as leases are concerned. No one wants to be forced to co-sign on a lease unless that is what they had been planning. It is therefore necessary to go for those housing communities that offer individual leases.
Privacy
You have a right to your privacy, and it should continue even after you have enrolled for college/university. Be sure to check the layout of the student housing and the measures that have been put in place to ensure every student gets the privacy they need. If you have to share rooms against your wish, you might want to look elsewhere. And this also goes for the type of fencing that has been used for the housing community. Does it allow outsiders plenty of view inside? Are you okay with this? These are questions that you must answer honestly.
Parking spaces
There should be plenty of parking space for the students living in the housing community, to prevent conflicts and avoid wastage of time. Bike racks should also be provided for those who use this alternative means of transport. The idea here is to make the lives of the students living here as easy as possible, and you should make sure steps have been taken to ensure this.
Common areas
Common areas such as outdoor kitchens and swimming pools should be provided to enable socialization, especially during those warm months when staying indoors is almost impossible. Remember that college is not just about books, but building relationships and networks too. It is therefore necessary to go for a student housing community that recognizes this fact, and works towards enabling it.
At the end of the day, it is you, the student, who decides what type of housing is best for you. However, with these useful tips, the process of narrowing down to the best student housing will become much easier.
----------------------------------------------------
Hayden Commons offers student housing for the FSU campus. We take pride in managing our property to ensure our residents have the opportunity to enjoy the great social and academic experience Florida State University offers. http://haydencommons.net/
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