Chicago, IL

[socialpsych]

Are there any/good EE or programming type jobs in Chicago?

[lycoris]

If these apartments that you mention are mostly not furnished, how much approximately do you think would it take to furnish a place (beds, chairs, tables, lamps, a long couch, etc)?

I've never tried to look for a furnished apartment. Going through the university is probably your best bet on that, though I suppose. Depending on when you plan to arrive, you may also be able to find a furnished sublet for at least part of your stay. This is perhaps more likely closer to campus, but you can search all over on Craigslist. If someone is going abroad for research or just taking a leave for a quarter, you might be able to rent their apartment from them, with all of their furniture in it. Sometimes they'll even subsidize the rent a little for you if you'll water their plants or take care of their cat or something while they're gone. Generally, I don't feel comfortably living in someone else's home like that, but since a lot of people leave for the summer, if you plan to arrive some time before the quarter actually starts, it might be a good initial sort of crash-pad while you look for a more permanent place.

If you have friends with a car, or if you have a driver's license and can rent a truck, you should be able to find inexpensive or even free used furniture very easily - it's just the transporting of it that can be a headache. When I moved two years ago, I got, from craigslist, a free couch, a free armchair recliner, a $50 dresser, three end tables for $15, and a dining room table and chairs for $50. I already had a bed my dad had given me, but those you can also get - mattress and frame, at least, nothing fancy - for $100 or less, often in very good shape (you'll want to check it out first, of course, and they'll expect you to pay cash and probably to move it yourself). Around the first weekend in September, which is Labor Day Weekend (the Monday is a federal holiday), there will be lots and lots of yard/garage sales, and you will likely be able to furnish an entire apartment by just wandering around on a nice morning. Craigslist also has a place for people to announce these yard sales. Partly, that's a big weekend for having yard sales, so people have them then; but also, that's a big weekend for moving (since the weather is nice and it's right before school starts), which means a lot of people are moving out and don't want to have to worry about their furniture, so they're happy to sell it for very cheap to anyone who will take it off their hands.

My recommendation to most people would be: if you can get here a month or two early (Northwestern's quarter starts in late September, so I would say sometime in August), secure through the school or on craigslist a furnished sublet that runs through Sept. 1st (no later than Oct. 1st) and stay there while you search for apartments and furniture in the area and get familiar with what's available and where you are and are not comfortable. Chicago, particularly Rogers Park, has lots of nice apartments that are relatively inexpensive, but you'll get a much better deal if you can take the time to go searching. September 1st is, again, a very big moving date, which makes it ideal for most students. If it's not possible for you to come before the quarter starts, try to find, through Northwestern's housing office or online listings (or craigslist, but start with the other two) a furnished sublet for the fall quarter or as much of the year as you can. It's not pleasant to move in December, but I still think it's preferable to signing up for a full year in an apartment you don't see until you move into it.

Also, i haven't checked lately, but my guess would be that most advanced listings will be available through NWU beginning possibly in March but more likely in April (if you're looking for next fall); right now I wouldn't guess there's anything. It's rare to find something on craigslist more than 2 months in advance of the move-in date, but it's worth looking because a search takes very little time/effort. If you haven't found anything by May, you could also post a wanted ad on craigslist for free.

Hope that helps! Feel free to keep asking.

[liszt85]

My recommendation to most people would be: if you can get here a month or two early (Northwestern's quarter starts in late September, so I would say sometime in August), secure through the school or on craigslist a furnished sublet that runs through Sept. 1st (no later than Oct. 1st) and stay there while you search for apartments and furniture in the area and get familiar with what's available and where you are and are not comfortable. Chicago, particularly Rogers Park, has lots of nice apartments that are relatively inexpensive, but you'll get a much better deal if you can take the time to go searching. September 1st is, again, a very big moving date, which makes it ideal for most students. If it's not possible for you to come before the quarter starts, try to find, through Northwestern's housing office or online listings (or craigslist, but start with the other two) a furnished sublet for the fall quarter or as much of the year as you can. It's not pleasant to move in December, but I still think it's preferable to signing up for a full year in an apartment you don't see until you move into it.

If I decide to attend, I'd arrive on the 27th of July for the summer orientation program which runs from July 27th to August 30th. They have asked me to apply for grad housing for the month of August or to let them know if I find off campus housing for that month. They advise people that its best to stay on campus for that month in order to be able to attend their classes and social events easily and then also use that time to look for something cheaper off campus. Grad housing, if my wife accompanies me right at the beginning, would be very expensive. They pay me $1600 for that month though. Anyway, I shall carry some extra cash with me. So what do you advise me to do? Apply for the grad housing? Is it impossible to find something cheap just for that month, online? The link given by Laura shows some pretty cheap 1BR apartments (~$500-600) but I'm not sure if they'd rent out for just the month of August. So from what you've written, I understand that it would be a good idea to look for a sublet and stay there in August and maybe Sept, find something better and inexpensive, and move out whenever that happens.

[itsamiracle]

Is Roger's Park as bad as everyone says? Same goes for the area surrounding UIC. I'm a small woman who will probably be leaving campus when it's dark out.

[lycoris]

I'm pretty small, and I lived in Rogers Park (with two roommates, in a gorgeous 2000 square foot 3 bedroom, 2 bath apartment with a dishwasher for $1475 a month including heat, a block from the red line and a block from the beach) for a year. It was my first year out of college, so I was temping during the day and bartending at night and doing things like wandering around with my ipod and my giant headphones on and coming home from the bar at 3 or 4 in the morning or from seeing friends at 9 or midnight, and was sometimes unable to sleep and would walk by myself half a mile to this one convenience store that stocked my brand of cigarettes AND those convenience store sandwiches AND took credit cards AND were open all night. I went to the beach, by myself or with friends, after dark or before dawn, I circled around looking for parking and walked from several blocks away when I finally found it, I came from the bus or the train or the neighborhood bars. I never felt even remotely unsafe, and it was rare for me to walk the block from the train to my apartment after dark and NOT see a patrol car pass by. I always smiled & waved.

Don't live up by Howard. Howard is sketchy. Cheap, but sketchy. The Loyola stop on the red line is fine, the Morse stop is extremely fine, and the Jarvis stop is sometimes a little sketchy but you'll probably still be safe there.

You know where it's dangerous, where you're likely to get mugged? Lincoln Park. You know where you're likely to get your apartment broken into? Wicker Park or Bucktown. You know why? That's where the people with money live.

Have city sense, but don't be afraid of Rogers Park and Edgewater, which are really nice neighborhoods that racist people will tell you are "bad" because black people (mostly African and Caribbean immigrants, but also a small African-American population) live there (and stupid but not necessarily racist suburbanites will tell you are "bad" because they've never been there but that's what they've heard). Look at the crime watchers website someone posted earlier in this thread; when the worst crime in a two-block radius in the last six months was some kid getting busted for marijuana possession or someone's car getting sideswiped, that's a pretty good indicator that nothing really bad's going down around there.

[feisty]

^^^^Good post.

One summer I lived in River North/the Gold Coast (for free, long story). There were multiple stabbings around the corner from my fancy high rise, and a serial stalker-rapist in Bucktown/Wicker Park. When people say "safe" in Chicago they too-often mean "white".

I have a lot of friends who live around UIC, and my brother's tiny blonde girlfriend lives up in Edgewater, and they are all healthy and alive.

[slick]

hi all

my bf will be starting a phd at u chicago this autumn. we've been living together for 3 years, and we'd like ot live in graduate housing (probably can't visit before moving), but i just noticed a clause mentioning that only spouses or same-sex domestic partners can live in student housing with a student - does anyone know anything about this? seems a bit ridiculous to me. is there a loophole? if all else fails, advice for finding somewhere near the uni that's equally reliable and affordable?

also, are tehre any web sites or organizations for dance in chicago, short of all the individual companies/studios? i'd like to get connected with the dance community but am not finding any leads.

cheers

[liszt85]

Northwestern University:

I need some urgent advice as I'm in a real tight spot. I plan to bring along my wife with me. Now my stipend is $20.5K per year inclusive of summer funding. After taxes that will come to around $1500 per month. From my search, I found that a 1BR apartment in a cheap area near NU would cost around $800-900. The remaining $600 would be insufficient to support two people in Chicago (as I'll have to pay for books and supplies, my wife's insurance, etc). I hear that we might get back all the tax amount when we file for tax returns. Is that true (I'm an Indian citizen)? Then does that mean that I will get the entire amount of $20.5 effectively per year?

The professor also wrote to me and said that it was highly risky to support two people on one stipend and that if I must decline their offer due to this, they would understand. I however really have not many other offers left to choose from. One is Ohio State University but there are lots of problems there, low stipend and not a good research fit. The other is McMaster in Canada, again too low a stipend (but great research fit, and yet to hear from them officially).

I was thinking that if a 1BR apartment is so costly, might I be able to get a cheaper studio?? A couple can stay in a studio (even if it means lesser privacy). How much do you think a studio could cost me? Do you have any advice for me and do you think I can make this work on such a stipend? Please do give me all the advice (on financial matters) that you can, I'll appreciate that immensely! What other expenses must I foresee?

I'm freaking out now. I had counted on OSU to give me a fair stipend. Turns out that they offer just $11360 for 9 months and the professor who offered to fund my summers want me to work on a theme for the entire duration of my PhD that is far removed from my primary research interest! So unless I find somebody who would be willing to fund my summers who is also interested in what I'm interested in, OSU might not work at all. So basically I'm left with just Northwestern and I really really need to make this work and I don't quite see how I'll do that

[feisty]

liszt85-

It's not ideal, and I don't know how easy it is to get caught, but there are jobs that you or your wife could do under the radar. Can you or her tutor anything (languages, music, etc.) for cash? Babysitting/nannying, a few restaurant jobs, fixing computers, fixing anything, cutting hair, threading, mending, one-time IT gigs, selling things, etc.

http://ask.metafilter.com/59912/How-do- ... -jobs-work

I don't know. Maybe it's a bad idea, but I feel like your wife's visa restrictions are the biggest problem. Is there no other way around them?

[liszt85]

liszt85-

It's not ideal, and I don't know how easy it is to get caught, but there are jobs that you or your wife could do under the radar. Can you or her tutor anything (languages, music, etc.) for cash? Babysitting/nannying, a few restaurant jobs, fixing computers, fixing anything, cutting hair, threading, mending, one-time IT gigs, selling things, etc.

http://ask.metafilter.com/59912/How-do- ... -jobs-work

I don't know. Maybe it's a bad idea, but I feel like your wife's visa restrictions are the biggest problem. Is there no other way around them?

She's very well trained in Indian Classical Music (voice) and that normally has a lot of takers. She also has completed her masters in Physics. So yes, she can tutor and her visa restrictions are indeed our biggest problem. I've heard that people do it but I've heard about the rare cases in which people have been caught and sent back to their countries and I don't want to take that risk. People get caught in the most bizarre ways. I heard this story from a friend in Boston (who attends Berklee). There was this international affairs staff member was who getting married and hence hired a band. There was this Israeli chap in the band. The person who hired the band had to report him because that was her job! The Israeli was sent back to his country. You never know who's going to come seeking your services, and its always a risky thing to do.

I've heard that its possible to get your spouse a visa with a work permit if its Canada. Does anybody know about this? In that case, if McMaster offers me a place (there is a good chance they will), I might lean towards it.

[LiteratureMajor]

UIC is one of the universities I applied to this season. According to the results page, someone was accepted yesterday (February 11). Would you -- or anyone else who has heard from this school and department -- please share more details? Has your status been updated on UIC's Web site? Was funding offered? What are your stats? Do you know anything about how many PhD applicants will be admitted this year? I suppose I am hoping to gauge how things will go on my end. I would sincerely appreciate more information.

Thank you.

[pea-jay]

Since the OP who first brought this up IS familiar with NYC, its only Chicago that needs some background on.

My cousins and friends still live on the north side of the city. It is a diverse area and probably the most "New York" part of the city, at least when it comes to density, living accommodations and transit service. You can do anything and get anywhere at all hours of the day. The combination of the Red/Purple/Brown lines allow for rail service that is most akin to NYC's local/express services with busses filling in the gaps. It's probably also the most expensive, outside of the highpriced downtown and River North condos and apartments. The extensive lakeside parks complete this area's attractiveness and beats a view of the East River any day. It's the closest thing to Manhattan outside of Manhattan.

That said, I never personally lived on the North Side. My preferences were always for the Northwest side, inland from the Lake along Milwaukee Avenue. Also accessible 24hrs by train and occasional Owl bus, this area was grittier, funkier and more "real" than along the Red Line. I lived in what was best described as a Poler-Rican neighborhood with the odd mix of Puerto Ricans, Polish and young 20 and 30-somethings (singles and families) priced out of areas closer to the lake. Other areas further to the northwest were made up of your classic native Chicagoan, decendants of past immigration waves, now thoroughly American. Kinda like what you would find in the outer reaches of Queens. I've been to Queens, have family from there. It feels similar.

For me, I am not the slightest bit intimidated by the size of either city. So when it came time to go back to grad school, I only had two cities I really would consider. Having lived in Chicago (ditto for my wife) we would have no real problem going back. Having visited NYC a number of times over the year, the allure of that place only seems to grow. Time to try something new.

For you, I'm sure you'll probably enjoy it and I highly recommend checking out places along the Milwaukee avenue corridor (if you don't mind the extra commute) in addition to the north side itself. If at all possible try and visit the city before you make your decision.

Edited March 7, 2010 by pea-jay

[Tiglath-Pileser III]

is Hyde Park safe at night? It seems I am going to have a lot of nite classes...

No. Not at all.

[deckard]

No. Not at all.

I lived in Hyde Park for a year and it never gave me the safe

vibe. Southwards of the Midway (ironically where the new grad housing apts are), things get really dodgy and a grad student was fatally shot during a botched mugging when I was there.

Things are not that much better on the northside of the midway where the campus is. Reason being that UChicago students are easy pickings for would-be muggers. You get email alerts all the time of robberies and such just a few blocks away (one time these 2 goons attempted to rob the Booth School reception counter at 3pm, thankfully without a gun).

That said, some precaution goes a long way. I was never mugged. But I always planned my route, wait timings and had contingency plans.

[Pamphilia]

I'm pretty small, and I lived in Rogers Park (with two roommates, in a gorgeous 2000 square foot 3 bedroom, 2 bath apartment with a dishwasher for $1475 a month including heat, a block from the red line and a block from the beach) for a year. It was my first year out of college, so I was temping during the day and bartending at night and doing things like wandering around with my ipod and my giant headphones on and coming home from the bar at 3 or 4 in the morning or from seeing friends at 9 or midnight, and was sometimes unable to sleep and would walk by myself half a mile to this one convenience store that stocked my brand of cigarettes AND those convenience store sandwiches AND took credit cards AND were open all night. I went to the beach, by myself or with friends, after dark or before dawn, I circled around looking for parking and walked from several blocks away when I finally found it, I came from the bus or the train or the neighborhood bars. I never felt even remotely unsafe, and it was rare for me to walk the block from the train to my apartment after dark and NOT see a patrol car pass by. I always smiled & waved.

Don't live up by Howard. Howard is sketchy. Cheap, but sketchy. The Loyola stop on the red line is fine, the Morse stop is extremely fine, and the Jarvis stop is sometimes a little sketchy but you'll probably still be safe there.

You know where it's dangerous, where you're likely to get mugged? Lincoln Park. You know where you're likely to get your apartment broken into? Wicker Park or Bucktown. You know why? That's where the people with money live.

Have city sense, but don't be afraid of Rogers Park and Edgewater, which are really nice neighborhoods that racist people will tell you are "bad" because black people (mostly African and Caribbean immigrants, but also a small African-American population) live there (and stupid but not necessarily racist suburbanites will tell you are "bad" because they've never been there but that's what they've heard). Look at the crime watchers website someone posted earlier in this thread; when the worst crime in a two-block radius in the last six months was some kid getting busted for marijuana possession or someone's car getting sideswiped, that's a pretty good indicator that nothing really bad's going down around there.

I lived in Rogers Park and agree with everything in this post. It makes me sad that RoPo gets such a bad rap--I love the neighborhood.

[VUbrat08]

Hey all,

I'm planning on starting at Columbia College in the fall, and I was just wondering which nearby areas are the best/safest to live. I'm going to be living by myself in a studio apartment (I'm female), and I'm looking for rent to be anywhere in the 500-1000 range. I would really appreciate any info.

[heu mihi]

So I've accepted Northwestern's offer and now know that I will definitely be in Chicago next year. I'm planning to live in Edgewater/Andersonville. Can anyone recommend places to check out (restaurants, bars, anything really) in that neighborhood and elsewhere? Particularly, any good grocery stores/ethnic markets/farm markets?

[swifteye]

I don't want to distract from the discussion of neighborhoods (might join in on that next month), but I was getting curious about the weather. I'd be going to Chicago after four years in sunny Southern California, where I break out the t-shirts in January and never need more than a light fleece to get through the evenings.

How abrupt of a change is Chicago (other than very)? How well does the city handle snow?

[pea-jay]

On 3/23/2010 at 9:16 PM, swifteye said:

I don't want to distract from the discussion of neighborhoods (might join in on that next month), but I was getting curious about the weather. I'd be going to Chicago after four years in sunny Southern California, where I break out the t-shirts in January and never need more than a light fleece to get through the evenings.

How abrupt of a change is Chicago (other than very)? How well does the city handle snow?

I'm not going to lie to you...it'll take some getting used to. My now-wife moved from SoCal and lasted exactly one winter before wanting to leave. Still, dress warmly and in layers and you will get used to it. I lived in even colder Wisconsin for a part of my childhood so the city was actually warmer.

As for snow, Chicago isn't one of this country's snow capitals by any stretch of the imagination. The air is usually too dry to allow for major storms and it is on the wrong side of the lake for Lake Effect blizzards. Thus the most snow falls are USUALLY well cleared. Usually... Every few years, the city will get a major snowfall (my experience was in 1999 when we got 18 inches in a day) that will really screw things up. But by and large, I found winter in Chicago to be less disruptive than around DC which comes to a grinding halt with more than a few inches of snow.

But don't despair. Chicago spring and summers are very nice (variable weather and all)

[oreo]

Hi, I need your help here as I might not be able to fly into Chicago to view apartments. Can you suggest specific apartments in Hyde Park with a great view of the lake? Feel free to list any many as you could because I have a dogs and I am aware that quite a lot of the apartments only allow cats and/or small dogs (I have a bulldog/50lbs). Many thanks!!!

[aboxofcarrots]

Hi all, this thread is pretty dead.. I'll be going to NW this fall...anyone else attending NW? as mentioned previously i'm looking forward to renting at Rogers Park but am willing to explore other areas...even considering finding a roommate or two to share a 2/3 bedroom apartment cos it's just more economically feasible that way...what about you guys? when will you start hunting for apartments? anyone planning to stay on campus?

lycoris i loved reading your post!

[SLPFA2010]

Hi all, this thread is pretty dead.. I'll be going to NW this fall...anyone else attending NW? as mentioned previously i'm looking forward to renting at Rogers Park but am willing to explore other areas...even considering finding a roommate or two to share a 2/3 bedroom apartment cos it's just more economically feasible that way...what about you guys? when will you start hunting for apartments? anyone planning to stay on campus?

I'm starting in the fall, too. I live on the NW side of the city already, and don't plan on moving, but I also don't mind an hour commute on the train. As long as you live on the purple/red line, though, you'll have a pretty short commute. There's a number of great neighborhoods along those train lines. You can pretty much start your apartment search as early or late as you'd like--apartments are always popping up in different neighborhoods, all with different timelines for leases to start. Craigslist is a great way to find apartments and get an idea of price ranges, and can be great for finding roommates as well. (I've found totally normal roommates in Chicago this way, I swear.) There are also a number of free apartment search services. My last few apartments, though, I've just found by walking around the neighborhood I want to move to and looking for "For Rent" signs.

Here are a few guides to the city you might want to check out:

http://www.windycitizen.com/ clearinghouse of Chicago blog posts

http://www.chicagoreader.com/ the weekly independent newspaper

http://www1.chicagor...ies/chicago101/ the Reader's intro to the city from 2006--most is still relevant

http://www.yelp.com/chicago if you look around a bit, people post on almost everything

[hopefulwoolfian]

Hi all,

I looked for this in previous topics, but didn't find much. I'm very interested in Loyola Chicago, but I know they only accept 4-5 funded students a year. Does anyone know how many applications they normally get? Or have any other information about their current admissions status? I'm still definitely applying, but just trying to temper my excitement with the reality of acceptance rates.

Thanks!

[vaaarr]

I'm an undergraduate at the University of Chicago and live in Hyde Park, so I feel that I should provide a counterweight to some of the posters who have come before me (and maybe provide a more recent assessment of goings-on, especially on campus safety).

Hyde Park is about 30-40 minutes from downtown Chicago by public transit and about the same by bike if you're in good shape. Wikipedia has a nice map and statistics on the population, so I won't bore you with that. People are generally a bit hippyish here in a way that's a bit hard to describe, but it's generally a nice populace. There's a broad mix of housing not owned by the University, with quite a few apartment towers, although it's mostly large 3-story U-shaped apartment buildings with courtyards. Even numbered (east-west) streets are mostly residential, as are most of the named (north-south) streets. There's no one commercial strip, but rather three or four areas lined with small shops and several larger shopping centers spaced about, mostly towards the lake and on the odd-numbered streets. This is because the University occupies much of the land away from the lake. The end result is that if you live in the right (not way at the western edge) part of the neighborhood, you'll be within walking distance of anything you might need, food/toiletries-wise. Within Hyde Park, there is a lot of transportation to be had: the streets are extremely bikeable, a Metra (light commuter rail) line runs near the lake, and there are three buses that do circles around the neighborhood and through campus. The university also operates a shuttle service at night that makes getting to and from campus easy once the buses stop running.

Getting downtown isn't a breeze, but I'd hardly call it difficult. Both of the major south-side El lines (red and green) sit well to our west, across Washington Park and in a fairly sketchy neighborhood. You can take a bus to either of those and get downtown from there, or you can ride the Metra downtown (it's a bit more expensive), OR you can take any number of express buses that run up Lake Shore Drive right downtown. Or you could do what I do sometimes, and bike up the lakefront path--if the wind is with you you can actually beat public transit, on occasion. The long and short of it is that it's certainly not the city center, but there are plenty of ways of getting around.

HP has more amenities than most people posting before have let on. There are all kinds of inexpensive if not award-winning restaurants, several convenience stores, two supermarkets, many smaller food stores (which I personally prefer), salons and barbershops, four independently owned bookstores, at least three or four museums (more if you count really small art exhibition spaces and temporary spaces), two liquor stores, and plenty of coffee to go around (most of the shops are on campus). I'd say it's cheaper to live here than in many other neighborhoods, although that might just be for lack of a commute: you will rarely NEED to leave the neighborhood unless you're going to go do something fun elsewhere. What Hyde Park doesn't have is a movie theater for NEW movies (we do have Doc Films, though, a very nice student-run cinema, that screens films from all eras) or a significant retail (clothing, furniture, etc.) sector. There isn't much of a nightlife: no clubs, but three or four decent bars (five counting the University-owned Ida Noyes Pub), but they all close at at least the usual 2 AM, if not sooner. People sometimes joke that the main library is the hottest social spot in Hyde Park.

Finally, contrary to the impression you might get from its location, the neighborhood actually has one of the lowest rates of violent crime in Chicago proper--the shooting someone mentioned a few pages back is a rare happening, thankfully. This is largely due to our having the second-largest private police force in the world cruising around at all hours. The typical crime pattern is people from neighborhoods much further south coming and committing petty crimes (burglaries, the occasional mugging, the rare car theft). The University takes pains to prevent this, though, as you might have guessed by the existence of the nighttime shuttles. There's also a service called SafeRide in which smaller shuttles are on-call and provide pick-ups and drop-offs if you're not on a shuttle route or they've stopped running. Apart from that, things are well-lit nearly everywhere, there's a decent amount of foot traffic at most hours, and I honestly have yet to feel threatened while walking around at night, which I do often enough. Other (frequently sketchier) neighborhoods almost don't need to be mentioned, even if they do form a part of Hyde Park's milieu, because you will almost never go into them. They're food deserts and lack entertainment facilities, so they're essentially byways for the buses you'll be taking to further neighborhoods. One, Woodlawn, does bear mentioning: despite a higher rate of crime, a LOT of students (grads included) live there for the incredibly cheap rent and refurbished apartments that are starting to creep into the area, and also because it's so near campus. It even has a coffee shop now. If you don't mind a nearby turf war between two gangs and also don't mind participating in slow gentrification, then Woodlawn isn't that bad a place to live.

Feel free to ask questions if you've got any!

[ck03yh]

Hi guys-

well I know application season is coming to a close and we're all starting to decide where to go, and making plans for next year!

I'm a canadian( from Toronto) moving to Chicago to study at SAIC as a grad student- I wondering if anyone has any suggestions on where to live- are their cooperative housing options, or apartment living that current grads look at?

I'm in my late 20's so I'd be ideally looking for perhaps a more independent living style-

anyone lookin' for a roomate? I'm a super-awesome nice person

I'm curious- do many grad students live on campus, or do they usually live off campus, because I'm open to dorm style living if people have had good experiences doing that

Anyway, just lookin for advice on the topic!

Thanks guys