Mal83 Posted May 19, 2011 Posted May 19, 2011 Does anyone know how the living situation will be? I live in California so it's not easy to fly in and out to look for apartments. I don't find the school's housing website too helpful: I can look at the apartments online but it's out of context especially for those who can't afford to travel over there. I'm basically in the same boat you are, but I'm going to George Mason which is relatively close in norther VA. I currently live in arizona and do not anticipate going out there to look at apartments, just can't see spending the money to do that. I need every penny for the huge expense it will be to get out there and get started in my expensive apartment. I will be living by myself, I want to avoid the roommate situation at all costs, I just need my own space. I also don't want to touch websites like Craig's List or For rent by owners, I need the security of a legit lease and apartment complex. But these things are costly in this area. I have been finding quite a few options that are right at my price limit and I've had to get comfortable with spending a little more than I anticipated. I'll be getting a grad plus loan so I'll be OK paying around 1000-1100 a month for a little while until I find any kind of paying job. Anything cheaper and it's a bad neighborhood, too far out in the suburbs as I will not have a car, or it's someone's basement apartment. I've found quite a few options in Alexandria VA, which is metro accessible and minutes from DC on Forrent.com and apartmenthomeliving.com. I know it's out of context, I've been having trouble with that too. But I've been intensively getting into it and have found the more phone calls I make and the more research I do the better I feel about it. Find some places in your price range and call them, ask them the important questions, if you're going to live outside of DC and won't have a car you need to know how walkable the area is. It's best to just call and ask. I've seen websites say one thing and then it's a little different when I call. Also Google Earth is a great resource, you type in any address and you'll be able to literally see all of these moving maps that are literally right down on the ground, you can see the street you'll have to walk down in order to get to the metro or bus...it's still not quite the same as going there and getting a feel for it, but I think we have the resources to make the best decisions possible. I've already got out 2 lease applications so it's starting to come together...
CalSeeker Posted May 19, 2011 Posted May 19, 2011 Does anyone know how the living situation will be? I live in California so it's not easy to fly in and out to look for apartments. I don't find the school's housing website too helpful: I can look at the apartments online but it's out of context especially for those who can't afford to travel over there. I am also in California and looking for DC/Northern VA apartments. I could also definitely use apartment tips. It is pretty depressing how much more we will be paying for a much smaller space than I currently have. In response to Mal83, have actually heard a lot of positives about Craigslist in DC. When I have been looking, there have been a lot of actual apartment complexes advertising there too. Another option is to try to use a realtor to help you identify good areas and find apartments. That option is more likely to have you end up in a condo that someone is renting out, but I do not think that is really less secure than an apartment complex. Plus it seems to be much cheaper in many cases. I have been looking mainly on the orange and blue metro lines for easy access to school and downtown. That means mainly Arlington neighborhoods and Fairfax on the orange line and Alexandria on the blue line. I have heard that Capitol Hill in DC is improving, but it has a reputation for being more sketchy.
Mal83 Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 Whoa! Just got into GW off the waitlist! Wasted no time accepting and sending in that enrollment form...this is such a dream, I'm still shocked and I got the email at 7:30 this morning...16 hours ago....YAY!
FluffMeister Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 Whoa! Just got into GW off the waitlist! Wasted no time accepting and sending in that enrollment form...this is such a dream, I'm still shocked and I got the email at 7:30 this morning...16 hours ago....YAY! Congratulations, Mal! That is really great news!
Mal83 Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 Congratulations, Mal! That is really great news! Gee thanks! Good luck at Yale!
ep1181 Posted May 24, 2011 Posted May 24, 2011 Whoa! Just got into GW off the waitlist! Wasted no time accepting and sending in that enrollment form...this is such a dream, I'm still shocked and I got the email at 7:30 this morning...16 hours ago....YAY! Congrats!!
CalSeeker Posted May 27, 2011 Posted May 27, 2011 Whoa! Just got into GW off the waitlist! Wasted no time accepting and sending in that enrollment form...this is such a dream, I'm still shocked and I got the email at 7:30 this morning...16 hours ago....YAY! Awesome, congratulations! See you there!
Mal83 Posted May 27, 2011 Posted May 27, 2011 Awesome, congratulations! See you there! Thanks so much!
BryanJ Posted June 15, 2011 Posted June 15, 2011 Thanks so much! Hey Mal, congrats!! I know it's way late, but I haven't checked here in a long time .
JHock10 Posted June 20, 2011 Posted June 20, 2011 HI everyone, anyone here accepted into the SPS program?
Carthage Posted June 20, 2011 Posted June 20, 2011 HI everyone, anyone here accepted into the SPS program? Yeah! I actually transferred programs from general IA to SPS after being accepted, really glad I did so. Can't wait til classes start.
Mal83 Posted June 20, 2011 Posted June 20, 2011 Hey Mal, congrats!! I know it's way late, but I haven't checked here in a long time . Oh wow thanks! It's been a while for me too...hey best of luck to you at Georgetown!
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