Columbus, OH

[burgundykitten]

I have also been accepted to OSU and most likely will be moving there. I've found what look like decent and affordable apartments in the Discovery District on E Towne Street near Grant and Washington. I'll be out there in a couple of weeks but before I set up an appointment to see the place, I was hoping someone could tell me if this part of downtown is a nice place to live. It seems so close to downtown so I am concerned that the $500 price tag is surprisingly low and perhaps indicative of something that I should be aware of. Any thought?

This'll seem silly, but try Google Earth-ing any apartment addresses so you have a theoretical view of the neighborhood. This seemed effective (obviously not better than actually visiting) when my roommates & I were choosing where to live.

[PhDreaming]

This'll seem silly, but try Google Earth-ing any apartment addresses so you have a theoretical view of the neighborhood. This seemed effective (obviously not better than actually visiting) when my roommates & I were choosing where to live.

one step ahead of you but I didn't want to invest too much in what I could gather from street-view on gmaps.

[risingsun11801]

I'm surprised that nobody here has mentioned living east of High Street. You can still find plenty of great housing in this area that's affordable on a GTA/GRA/fellowship. What's nice is that the East Residential bus line runs in this neighborhood to campus. It practically runs at all hours of the day from 7 am to midnight during the week, and every 34 minutes from 7 am to 7 pm during the breaks and summer. Living here, you can bike, walk, or take the bus.

I personally would not recommend this for grad students. East of High Street is undergrad central with partying, frats, and is a less safe neighborhood in general. If you want to live close enough to walk/bike, stay west of High Street south of campus.

[burgundykitten]

On top of being an undergrad area, I've always felt like east of High can be shady (no offense intended!). It's still a shock to drive down 11th & watch it transition from the Drexel-campus area to places with boarded up windows within a minute.

[straightshooting]

I'd say that there is an important difference between east of High Street south of Lane Avenue and north of it. There are some undergrads up in that direction, but it's mostly non-student 20s-30s people and working class families. Some of the areas in the northeast quadrant also have long-term middle-class families as well. It's not going to be as quaint as Clintonville or south of King down the Neil Ave. corridor (the Victorian Village and Harrison West areas), but it's also a good deal cheaper than them and rather nicer than the student ghetto between campus (~10th) and King on the west side of High. That said, you do likely want to stay away from the area east of High much south of Lane. It goes from undergrad wasteland to very low income neighborhood quite quickly.

That said, most people moving to Columbus only feel comfortable in the Victorian Village and Clintonville areas. And, for those willing to live a little farther out, Grandview. I like all of those areas (though I'd say Grandview is probably too far), but prefer something a little less socioeconomically homogenous. I'd be happy to weigh in on potential real estate for anyone looking.

Edited February 26, 2012 by straightshooting

[Blurry]

How is transit in Clintonville (say to and from campus as well as to and from downtown and short north areas).

[kikalique87]

How is Italian Village? I found some really cheap pretty nice houses online there, but the term "recently gentrified" has been bandied about quite a bit. I am just looking for some place that is not undergrad heavy, safe enough, and won't break the humanities TA stipend.

[straightshooting]

How is transit in Clintonville (say to and from campus as well as to and from downtown and short north areas).

The COTA #2 bus will get you to and from everything up and down the High Street corridor. The commute is going to be longer than from the Short North/Victorian Village area, especially if you're up in Clintonville proper.

How is Italian Village? I found some really cheap pretty nice houses online there, but the term "recently gentrified" has been bandied about quite a bit. I am just looking for some place that is not undergrad heavy, safe enough, and won't break the humanities TA stipend.

Italian Village is spotty. It's hard to assess it generally, as some parts are very nice and quite safe and others are about as bad as the area can get. If I were going to offer a rule at all--mind you, there are exceptions--it'd be to stick with south of 3rd Ave and west of Summit St., between Summit and High.

Edited February 28, 2012 by straightshooting

[beeskibran]

When's a good time start looking for apartments? I wouldn't be moving to the area until about the beginning of August....

[echolikebells]

On 3/4/2012 at 6:10 PM, beeskibran said:

When's a good time start looking for apartments? I wouldn't be moving to the area until about the beginning of August....

To be honest, most of the housing in the University District is already accounted for. I would look into housing NOW if you need/want to be in the immediate off-campus area. If not, I would still start looking soon at things like Craigslist for surrounding districts (Clintonville and The Short North are both close to campus and easily accessible via bike, public transit [the fee for which you pay automatically by enrolling], and, for the Short North, by foot). We are a huge university and our housing search starts in January for leases that start in August/September.

 

On 2/14/2012 at 8:51 AM, archer said:

Does anyone have feedback about on-campus graduate housing?

A quick look at Google Maps shows that grad housing on Neil Avenue is fairly close to the History department at Dulles Hall, which is what I'm looking for. I really don't mind ugly, cramped apartments but I'd rather not deal with any silly curfews and restrictions that tends to come with campus housing. I've read through the leasing terms and conditions, and so far haven't been scared away. So does anyone have experiences/advice/warnings they could share? Thank you!

I don't have experience with the grad housing, but I did live on campus for a year as an undergrad and figured I would speak up, since their rules are probably harder to live with than grad rules would be. That being said, we didn't really have rules. No curfew, so rule against opposite sex in your room. The only rules were no alcohol, drugs, or candles, and quiet after 9 during finals week.

[Jbate002]

Is it a horrible idea for me to go there sometime in mid July to find a place to live?

[echolikebells]

Is it a horrible idea for me to go there sometime in mid July to find a place to live?

You might find something, but I would personally recommend trying to make a trip up in June at least. The term starts in August, so if you don't come till mid-July to look, I doubt you would have much luck for August leases.

[MA-SLP FTW]

I've seen Dublin pop up here a few times, and thought I'd weigh in since I'm living there now. The commute is inconsistent. If I leave at 7-7:15am I can get to West Campus (where I park, it's not bad) in about 20 minutes. If I leave any later than that, it takes anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Same around PM rush hour.

Dublin is great for families, however. There are plenty of good places to eat, and you don't have to compete with "game day" traffic, but I'm sure that's true of most places near i-270.

My husband and I will be moving closer to campus because we're looking for something a little more hip. Nothing against Dublin, just looking forward to being able to walk to where we want to go.

[beyourownlight]

Is it a horrible idea for me to go there sometime in mid July to find a place to live?

For a single, it's not a great idea. But most of the places won't actually offer you a lease this far out. There are some of the university district housing that will sign you earlier, but most are 2-3 months out(so June-ish). That's what I'm finding anyway.

If you're looking for roommates/share, then you should totally start looking right now.

[MA-SLP FTW]

How is Italian Village? I found some really cheap pretty nice houses online there, but the term "recently gentrified" has been bandied about quite a bit. I am just looking for some place that is not undergrad heavy, safe enough, and won't break the humanities TA stipend.

A lot of deciding on where you're going to live depends on how comfortable you are in city settings in general. Having spent 2 years working in downtown Chicago, there's nothing that really scares me about Italian Village. That being said, I wouldn't live just anywhere in IV without taking a look at the immediate surrounding area first.

I've also heard (from folks presently living in the area) that if you're looking for a place to live in Short North, you may miss out on opportunities because many apartments will open for immediate occupancy. If you're going to live alone and/or have some flexibility (no kids, pets, etc.) you might be OK with waiting it out.

[echolikebells]

I've also heard (from folks presently living in the area) that if you're looking for a place to live in Short North, you may miss out on opportunities because many apartments will open for immediate occupancy. If you're going to live alone and/or have some flexibility (no kids, pets, etc.) you might be OK with waiting it out.

It is 100% true that Short North apartments open for immediate occupancy-- that is the problem I am running into because even though I live in Columbus, I have a lease on my apartment that lasts til the end of July. For people that want to live in highly desirable neighborhoods that open up like that, may I suggest looking at the sublets that will be more than plentiful in the University area in June, July, and August. The University Disrict area apartments are not great but they usually have AC and furnished essentials, are located very near campus to allow you to get to know campus and the immediate off-campus area where you will be spending a lot of time, and are right off of High St, giving you access via the #2 COTA bus to the neighborhoods you would be looking for housing in. This would allow you to be here with a roof over your head (and access to public transit if you get your BuckID!) while you wait for the perfect immediate occupancy lease in Short North, Victorian Village, or Clintonville. Just a thought!

Edited March 28, 2012 by echolikebells

[mls188]

I'm an undergrad student starting graduate school at OSU and I opted to move to the Grandview area for the next school year. Grandview is a nice, smaller suburban area of Columbus where a lot of young professionals live due to the closeness to the medical center and campus. It is definitely also MUCH quieter than off campus.

I would also suggest not to live east of High Street in the off campus area. The landlords in this area do a lot of shady business practices. I've lived directly off of High for 3 years in 2 different places and there have been this year alone 2 break ins in my apartment complex, theft and burglary in the surrounding houses, random people sleeping on my stairwell at night, etc. I would not suggest living alone in these areas, especially towards south campus unless you install a security system.

Other areas that a lot of graduate/phd students live are in Clintonville and Victorian village. I've worked in Clintonville for two years and while I think that it is safer than the off campus area, it still has a small amount of crime from time to time. The only issues I would see in moving to Grandview would be the higher cost as well as the need to have a car and buy a parking pass. In Clintonville, COTA busses can take you directly to campus.

[Pepé Le Pew]

I lived in Columbus at various places near OSU for about fourteen years. To answer the question about when:

There are a few zones of housing, usually very close to the university (looking S E and N) that, for the most part, fill up in advance. If you don't mind living in an area not totally dominated by students (i.e. more than a mile away), it is very easy to find housing during the summer. Remember, this is a big city, and housing churns like crazy year-round.

Let me suggest two things:

First, place an ad on Craigslist explaining who you are, and what you want in housing - and, when you'd like to move into it. People who aren't currently listing will contact you. This works. Bump the ad up to the top every couple of weeks. This will save you enormous amounts of scouring.

Second, compare property addresses online to a map of sex offender registrants. This is easy to find. Not only do you not want them as neighbors, but you can also get a pattern of where good and bad areas are, down to the street level. Rapists and child molesters don't cluster in decent areas of the city.

Edited April 4, 2012 by mattmcg

[echolikebells]

I would also suggest not to live east of High Street in the off campus area. The landlords in this area do a lot of shady business practices. I've lived directly off of High for 3 years in 2 different places and there have been this year alone 2 break ins in my apartment complex, theft and burglary in the surrounding houses, random people sleeping on my stairwell at night, etc. I would not suggest living alone in these areas, especially towards south campus unless you install a security system.

While it is true that Columbus has a high crime rate, I do want to take the time to address this about the immediate off campus area in case anyone comes along that really, for one reason or another, wants to be immediately off campus. I live less than three blocks east of High St. and my apartment has never been broken into, neither have any in my building. Columbus is a city. It has the crime rates that accompany that. But if you've lived in a city, I don't think you will be negatively surprised by the crime here. If your ideal situation is trying to find an empty apartment in the immediate off campus area (not entirely sure you can by this point in the year, but it is possible) just keep these things in mind:

1. The higher the floor, the better. Rent prices will reflect this. I live on a third floor of a building and my rent is $20 more total ($10 per person) than the first floor.

2. Off-street parking can help avoid car break-ins because they are usually well-lit and right by the building. (Also, not leaving things just lying around your car that someone might want to steal helps avoid car break-ins.)

3. Your landlord should have lighting outside at night; the university recently sent squads out to check this and send notices to landlords who did not, then followed up to make sure this was remedied.

4. Buildings with a locked door into the building and then a secondary locked door into your specific apartment can be safer, and at least they keep people from sleeping in your stairwell.

[mls188]

On 4/5/2012 at 8:26 AM, echolikebells said:

4. Buildings with a locked door into the building and then a secondary locked door into your specific apartment can be safer, and at least they keep people from sleeping in your stairwell.

I agree with this. I also agree with being on a higher floor. I've been on the second floor and I've never had any issues with break-ins, all of the ones that occurred were downstairs. If I were to pick another off campus apartment I would probably choose one with no outside stairwells as well. For a long period of time we were having homeless guys sleep in the crawl space under our stairs as well as random others and its not safe at all, especially at night.

Also another smart thing to do if you are planning to move to off campus and do not want to spend the extra money on a security system is to visit the Union once you move in. Student services sells stick-on door and window sensors for free that alarm when separated.

[Jbate002]

Where is the best place to live if I am trying to be close to campus, avoid droves of undergraduates, but still close to restaurants and what not.

[beeskibran]

Where is the best place to live if I am trying to be close to campus, avoid droves of undergraduates, but still close to restaurants and what not.

I would suggest spending about 45 mins browsing through this forum because a lot of people have already answered that question and they give other useful advice. but I'm moving to Columbus as well for grad school and I've heard that Grandview, Clintonview, and Victorian Village are nice areas relatively close to campus, but far enough away where there aren't that many undergrads.

My roommate and I found a nice two-bedroom apartment in Victorian Village. We're moving in June CAN'T WAIT

[kgumps2012]

A friend and I are moving into an apartment on Kenny Rd. just north of Hudson St. Although it looks far on the map, its only about a 15 minute drive non-rush hour times. Additionally, the apartments up there have buses that run right outside/through the community that go right through campus. Rent is reasonable ~750 for a 2br +890sqft and is a nicer, quieter area.

Important lesson I recently learned the hard way, DO NOT TRY TO DRIVE NEAR CAMPUS ON A GAME DAY!! A 2 minute drive turns into almost 45minutes. 315, High st. Lane and Neil all back up to a stand still. If you absolutely need to run an errand try to do it either way before, during or way after the game.

[echolikebells]

Looking for apartments in the Short North is killing me. I know it'd be easier if we widened our desired area, but I've lived in Columbus for 4 years now and I know we want to be in the Short North next year. The apartments get fully booked for showings in less than 24 hours from the time they're listed on Craigslist, and the property management companies want you to be making more per month than a grad budget allows, even though I know I can afford some of these places. Major headache!

Just wanted to mention a neighborhood that doesn't get a lot of love from non-Columbus people, for those of you with cars that plan on driving to campus. Olde Towne East is much cheaper for 1-2 bedrooms than Short North, University District, and most of Clintonville, but the architecture is beautiful and it gives you walking access to a lot of Columbus stuff. It is a bit removed from campus, but those of you looking to stay away from the craziness of game days and undergrads and a gazillion frats and sororities might look into it and see if it is something you might be interested in!

[what lies ahead]

Hi everyone!

I am having a lot of trouble with my apartment search, and I was wondering if anyone else is having the same problem

Background: I am going to be starting my MA/PhD program in Slavic Linguistics this fall, and I need to be in town on August 13th for TA training. So, I'm looking for a place with an August 1st start lease. I am moving from Madison, Wisconsin My ideal place would be the Short North, but I'd also be very happy with Victorian Village or Southwest Campus (most of my classes are going to be in Hagerty Hall.)

I visited Columbus in March, and it was very expensive for me to do so. I will not be able to visit again.

I did not know, however, that this would result in such difficulty finding an apartment. I have been looking for apartments for several months now, and especially recently I have begun to run into a recurring problem.

I e-mail landlords of apartments I'm interested in to express my interest and/or ask questions. The landlord responds, asking me if I can come to a showing. I explain my situation, saying that I can't come to a showing, that I need to see pictures, but that I'm very interested to move forward.

The minute the landlord hears that, he doesn't respond. My impression is that there's such demand for these apartments, that the landlord doesn't want to hassle with sending pictures or, if there are pictures already, with responding to or dealing with me at all the second I say that I can't come to a showing.

I found a listing for an apartment in the Short North that was perfect (with pictures) and e-mailed the guy about it. He said it was still available and here are the times I could come see it. I explained my situation, and anticipating the same response from him as from the others, said that I was sure I wanted it, and could I please have an application?

Surprise surprise... He immediately stopped e-mailing me back, and still hasn't responded.

I am getting frustrated. Am I the first out-of-state grad student these people have ever dealt with? It's a university with 50,000 students!

Any advice would be great. Also, I don't have anyone there that could go see an apartment for me. I do have some acquaintances, but would feel very uncomfortable asking them unless it was a last resort.

Thanks!

Edited May 24, 2012 by what lies ahead