Newark, DE

[rinit]

Hi caromd50 -- looks like we're not getting much information this way. Have you visited the campus yet? (I'm going next week and will hopefully get some information on these sorts of things...)

[CarrieLe5]

Exactly what caromd said. I also got 16.5k stipend, and same preferences for housing, please.

From what I gathered so far: don't leave in apartments, leave in houses, and more on the west side of the town?

Also, how convenient would it be to live, for example, in Wilmington, and just commute in with public transport?

 

Hello. I'm also considering moving to Newark over the summer (from Lakewood, CA). I've emailed back and forth with a few students. They have indicated that a Wilmington commute is very doable. I've looked into grad housing at the university, but haven't been able to really see floor plans, etc. for grad-specific housing. Apartments seem to be in the 700-900 range, but the student who provided that info did not specify whether it was a one or two-bedroom apartment.

 

Can we keep this thread going?  Especially, information related to Housing Search, living situations, and other F13 applicants who are dealing with this.  When are people planning to house hunt, etc?

 

I am going to visit Newark next week to meet with faculty and students but also to check out the area and see which neighborhoods look nice and affordable. I agree that it's a good idea to keep the thread active. I'll repost after my visit next week if I learn anything new about the housing situation in Newark.

[ameshu205]

As a current grad student at Delaware, I'll take a shot at adding a bit more info to this thread. Much of what has been posted before still seems accurate to me. I've lived in Newark for three years and enjoyed my time here; while it is indeed a relatively small college town, I've found it to be a perfectly pleasant and easy place to live (especially if you have access to a car) and close to many other more exciting locations. 

 

A significant portion of UDel grad students live in the apartments complexes near campus. Most are nothing special, architecturally, but most offer well-maintained, fairly large spaces with some utilities included (and those that aren’t included are honestly nothing to worry about). If you’re not able to visit Newark before beginning a program here, you wouldn’t go wrong by signing a lease at one of the following places:

1. The Apartments at Pine Brook (http://www.apartmentsatpinebrook.com/): A large complex, about a 20-minute walk to campus; spacious 1.5 bedroom apartments that allow pets of all types for $750-$950/month; run by a very attentive management company; beautiful landscaping with a stream running through the complex and lots of pine trees; near the reservoir with walking trails.
2. Colonial Gardens (http://www.liveatcolonialgarden.com/): Located on Main Street, about a 15-minute walk campus; 1-bedroom apartments from $700-$900
3. College Town Apartments (http://udstudentrentals.com/CollegeTownApartments.html): Located west of campus on Elkton Road, about a 15-minute walk; 1-bedroom apartments from $700-$900; maintained by UD housing and offers flexible short-term rents and roommate-matching services.

Thoughts on other apartment complexes (NB: far from a comprehensive list):

1. Varsity Townhomes (http://www.varsityud.com/varsity-living/): I have no idea of the rent prices, but this appears to be a nice complex, in a good location, about 10-minutes north of campus.
2. Studio Green apartments (http://www.studiogreende.com/rooms-and-rates.html): Seconding what many have said earlier in the thread, Studio Green seems like a mixed bag. On the plus side, the apartments are plentiful, inexpensive, and on a shuttle line that runs to the center of campus. On the other hand, they are quite “cinderblock-y” with so-so maintenance, and very much of a college-dorm-like feel.
3. Conover Apartments (http://www.udel.edu/has/grad/locations.html#conover): There have been good descriptions of this complex by its residents earlier on this thread. Personally, I find them to be slightly overpriced ($970-980 for 1 bedroom), but their location can’t be beat (5-minute walk to campus).
4. There are also many complexes south of Newark that offer similar living experiences for a slightly better value. Generally speaking, it’s helpful to have a car to make the 10-15-minute drive to campus if one lives at one of these. Autumn Park Apartments (http://www.mmgapts.com/autumn-park-delaware.htm) is a good place to start, although there are many others. Just FYI: as nice as the Apple Chase Apartments (http://www.capanoresidential.com/apartments/9-applechase/overview.php) appear (for a very good value), they require a minimum monthly income that exceeds what most UDel grad students earn.
5. Ivy Hall Apartments (http://www.ivyhallapartments.com/): I’m happy to be corrected on this point by those who have had different experiences, but I personally would place them fairly far down a list of desirable places to live in Newark. They are close to the train station, which is both good and bad, I suppose, with a pretty distinct dorm-like atmosphere.

If one didn’t want to live in an apartment complex, there are a variety of other options around town. Craigslist is pretty quiet now and doesn’t really begin to get more active until the summer. Spaces in most privately owned properties tend to get snapped up quickly; while one can definitely find some gems this way, it seems necessary to be able to travel to Delaware to search them out. Finding a roommate through Craigslist is a different story; I’ve had many classmates who have found great roommate situations from a distance over the summer.

 

Last, but not least, many people live in Wilmington and make the 25-30-minute commute each day, or live in Philadelphia and commute in by train or car (about 60 minutes). As others have mentioned, the SEPTA service connecting Newark to Wilmington and Philadelphia runs at only limited times throughout the day (a few trains in the morning and a few in the late afternoon/evening). While it makes for a slightly less convenient commute by public transportation, many students and faculty do it regularly. 

 

Good luck to all on the housing search!

[CarrieLe5]

ameshu205, thanks for the list of apartments!

[ratlab]

Bump for the current prospective students

[gingin6789]

I'm gonna bump this again since there's a recruitment conference Sunday-Tuesday going on!  There is great info on lodging and Newark life nestled in this thread!

[ratlab]

I'm gonna be checking out lots of apartments on Tuesday, so let me know if you have any questions / wanna share apartment info! I'll try to remember to post my impression of places here.

[m-ttl]

I'm gonna be checking out lots of apartments on Tuesday, so let me know if you have any questions / wanna share apartment info! I'll try to remember to post my impression of places here.

 

I'm looking at Colonial Gardens, because it seems walkable/close to the shuttle and affordable for just me. If you could share anything you find/see though, that'd be great! 

Edited March 2, 2014 by m-ttl

[ratlab]

Yeah I actually am checking out the following (probably a few more on a whim): Apts. at Pine Brook, Studio Green, Oak Tree Apartments, Glen Eagle Village, Colonial Garden Apartments, The Varsity Apartments. (probably will check out Conover, Rockwood, maybe a few others).

[aimlessLady]

Yeah I actually am checking out the following (probably a few more on a whim): Apts. at Pine Brook, Studio Green, Oak Tree Apartments, Glen Eagle Village, Colonial Garden Apartments, The Varsity Apartments. (probably will check out Conover, Rockwood, maybe a few others).

 

Please do post what you think! I'm trying to make it up there in a couple of weekends to look, and having an initial idea would be great

[ratlab]

My opinions on all the apartments I saw (I'll try to post more info when I have time):

 

Glen Eagle Village: Spacious one bedrooms for a great price ($850-$875 a month). Seemingly nice and somewhat private community as you go a bit deeper. Well maintained and landscaped. Get a fully renovated apartment as they’re pretty awesome for only $20 more a month (bigger bathrooms and new kitchen). Also has a really nice balcony and you can have cats. Only downside was that the management was a bit unprofessional, but really personable!

 

Oak Tree Apartments: A tiny bit cheaper than Glen Eagle ($790-$885), but the apartments were not nearly as nice. They have no plans to renovate, so everything seemed a bit outdated. I also saw a lot of bad reviews online for bug complaints in Oak Tree. Same floor plan as an unrenovated Glen Eagle, but seems less well-maintained.

 

Apts. at Pine Brook: Really professional and nice staff and very nice private community. The community had really beautiful landscaping. Rent is going to be $900-930 all included but electricity. Spacious and nice apartment, can have cats, had a “den” (basically a second bedroom). The only thing I didn’t like was that the carpet was orange-brown and really ugly (not to mention what kind of stains and dirt that carpet could hide).

 

Colonial Garden Apartments: The apartments themselves were actually nice and spacious for about $835 a month, but the complex was filthy and didn’t have good security. There was a burrito spilled on the stairs going up to my apartment (it looked like it had been there awhile). Sketchy area as well (my mom got hit on by a creeper outside the apartment). Parking seemed like a real issue as well (limited spaces). But the proximity to campus was great. The leasing agent was pretty unprofessional.

 

The Varsity Apartments: Really sketchy area, I didn’t even go into the apartments – they seemed a little run down from even the outside with no personal space. I don’t know the price either.

 

Studio Green: I liked the single bedroom but for $930 a month it really isn’t a good deal (and it’s going to go up to $960 a month). All included in rent (even satellite and internet). Well maintained and friendly staff (also seemed to have pretty good security). The apartment was pretty darn small though compared to others on this list.

 

Hope this helps!

Edited March 6, 2014 by ratlab

[m-ttl]

Sounds like Pine Brook is my best option. My roommate might have a car, but I can't rely on her for going to class! Still I'm MASSIVELY concerned with the fact that they require cats be declawed. It's really inhumane and I'd RATHER pay steep damages or not get my safety deposit back. I want a kitty but don't want to brutalize them to do it.

 

I was going to go with colonial garden but...they asked me for my hair/eye color and weight?? On the waitlist application?? 

[m-ttl]

Oooh, update: Pine Brook called me and said they changed their declaw policy and don't really care if cats have claws. They were very assuring about it, and I said I knew it seemed like a small concern but was grateful they assuaged it. Think I can live with ugly carpets, haha! I'll save for a rug. 

[gingin6789]

I have nothing but wonderful things to say about the area of Newark, DE surrounding the university.  Main Street is great because there are so many places to eat and such a variety of options to choose from!!  

 

As for housing, ratlab has a great list of options listed above.  The only thing I'll add is that I was expressly warned AGAINST going to Studio Green.  They apparently changed the name of their apartments because the complex had such a bad reputation.  Again, this is only what I've heard, but the person I heard from is a reliable source who has been at UD for grad school for around five years.

 

Living in nearby Wilmington is also a great option if you have a car! There are ample housing options in the area.

[helpmegradcafe]

Hey if any U Delaware grad students are looking for a roommate next year message me!

[Mally77]

Does anyone know if the Conover apartments have a long waiting list? I applied in late February but I don't know what to expect in regards to the waiting list. 

Edited May 2, 2014 by Mally77

[Aldeidara]

I'll be starting my PhD program this fall.

The campus is absolutely beautiful (especially after 4 years in boring Midwest cornfield town, a.k.a. C-U), love the trails and the reservoir

Hail for no tax(!)(?), farewell Illinois, for life!

 

But yes, bus-less Sundays really are troublesome, but there is a bus that goes to Wilmington on Sunday and from there, Philly here I come!

[KrisTheNerd]

Bumping for Fall 2015! Any current UDel students around to answer questions?

[napoleon87]

Bump! Anyone have advice regarding living in the Wilmington area?  I hear Trolley Square is good, but I would also be interested in the rural parts of N. Wilmington.  Is Craigslist the best place to look or are there other options? Thanks!

[svent]

Don't commute from Wilmington, it's a pain. Traffic is pretty bad if you come during rush hour and Wilmington isn't that exciting either, and is more expensive. Newark is pretty spread out. There's Pine Brook, which isn't great (the leasing "office" seems kind of creepy), but pretty decent for grad student housing. It's close to campus and has a bus that brings you to campus I think. There's also plenty of places away from campus to the east (near Bear) that are more for young professionals/families. A bit more expensive and a little bit of a commute, but you can avoid the 95 traffic. There are also some residential areas to the north (Pike creek/North star area). No need to venture all the way to Wilmington if you don't want to live near campus.

[LoVeBirD-]

Before I begin I looked at a thread that was years old for answers but none really pertaining to my question specifically, and posts dating back to 2006 (yikes). So I guess mods can merge them if need be. 

Anyway I'm a grad student recently accepted to University of Delaware and I'm moving from out of state (New York) so I'm faced with housing. I really wanted to know if anyone has specifically lived in the Conover Apartments (the university's grad student housing) these days. Particularly the 1-bedrooms. Does anyone know what are they like and if they are worth the price the are asking for? Thanks in advance.

 

P.S. - I was also looking into Glenn Eagle Village Apartments so if anyone can shed any insight with Glen Eagle in relation to UD (i.e. transportation) that is also welcome.

Edited March 11, 2017 by LoVeBirD-

[rising_star]

@LoVeBirD-, we are intentionally trying to keep all of the information about a city/location in one thread so that people can benefit from past insight and also get a sense of how a place has been changing over the years. I've merged your thread. In the future, please follow the instructions in the sticky and post in the existing thread, rather than creating a new one that results in more work for the entirely volunteer moderating team.

[ClassicsCandidate]

If anyone has any questions about UDel or Newark, that's where I went for my undergrad and I was born/raised in DE, so I know a lot about the surrounding areas as well. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have any questions! 

[ahgfjhgf]

Bumping this post because I got accepted to a PhD program and am visiting next weekend. From reading this post it seems like Newark is similar to my undergrad college town (small town in upstate NY). So I think I will be either very comfortable or very bored haha. Anyway, is anyone else going next weekend for visit day? Also any places I should check out while I'm there?

[LibraryLivingJT]

U Del is my only acceptance so far (still waiting on 8 other programs) and am looking forward to checking it out when I visit in March.

Anything to check out in particular on campus or off of campus?

From the pictures I have seen, it looks like a beautiful campus!